Sorry; I guess I'm still not being clear about the whole "picture of the effect" issue. What I meant to get across was that the banding looked pretty much like the picture; it's just that live and in person it SEEMED worse, since it's big, illuminated and moving.

Anyway, looks like it's all well on the way to getting much better. I do have 2 questions, though:

Joe, do you know any other settings or tweaks I can do to reduce the remaining effect?

and... from what I have read on the web, the Oppo 971 DVD player may produce even better results than does the low end Sony I used as a test. Would you concur?

Again, thanks to all, most helpful!

Hello All;

Well I pulled the trigger on Zenith this past weekend. I have it setup a couple of days now so not to much time on it. This is a great set and best bang for your bucks out there. I had narrowed my choices down to the Panny, Maxent, Vizo and the Zenith. The Panny was too hard to find and the price was the highest. My wife wanted to stay with Big Name Brand rather than a New Off Name. But who can loose with those choices and price points for 50" PDP. :cool:

First impressions are HD is Awesome. DVD is Awesome. SD is ok, but that is to be expected, it is way better than my Old 53" Sony RPTV ever was. I have only done some quick tweaks taken from the other thread on Zenith settings. I will get in there with VE as soon as I can.

I am using Dish HD 811 box and the Zenith DVB318 ( 1080i via component ) both via component right now. Question to everyone is will there be a noticeable improvement to using a DVI HDMI Cable? Since there is only 1 HDMI should I think about a switch? or maybe connect the HD box via HDMI and leave the DVD via 1080i via component? or some combo there in. :D

What is everyone else doing? I will keep you all posted...

Thanks to everyone out there for this forum. I have been a long time lurker and have been researching this for a long time. Now question remains what do I do with my DLP Projector that I bought as a stop gap till I purchased the 50" PDP.

Thanks

-Joe
50" PDP vs 100" DLP??? Life is full of tough choices!!! :D

Jumping in a little late on the Batman discussion, but WOW -- chapters 33 and 34 are a real torture test for this TV! I must say, watching them over 720p and 1080i on a Samsung HD850 wasn't very impressive. I do love the TV. HD is awesome, and all DVDs (except this one) have been great. But man, this was a disappointment (especially when comparing the same chapters on a Hitachi 57" CRT).

I realize the HD850 is not the best player in the world, and I'm hoping thats the source of the problem. I'll know tomorrow after hooking a different DVD player up to the TV.

Other than that, I don't have any complaints. This TV has been a wonderful addition to the family. My wife loves it, too.

I'm glad to hear I'm not alone! I think I am going to try the Oppo player. It has gotten such high praise. The upconverting Sony helped what I will refer to as "The Batman Issue", but I think maybe a better player would eradicate even more, if not all.

On HD this TV is amazing, I've got contrast and bright down below 20s and 30s for break in period and it STILL looks great. One of the few times I've felt like I got an A/V bargain!

I guess I should ask before I make a blind purchase: does anyone here currently have the Oppo and the Zenith connected? If so, how's it look?

I have the Zenith and it never ceases to amaze me. That little player is great. I have it connected via Component ( 1080i ) and it looks awesome. I am on the fence about getting a DVI HDMI cable to test it. I put in Nemo, Monsters Inc and some other Favorite test material and it all looks great.

I will try the Batman Begins and let you know how it looks.

Let me say that HD is also unbelievable on this set. Once you see it you don't wanna watch SD TV anymore. I just added the Voom Package to my HD Package with Dish to get more content. Did I say WOW... :D

Just curious if anyone else has heard back from Zenith yet regarding their Mail In Rebate form. I tried checking the website listed on the form last night but it was "dead". So I called the 877 # this morning and a nice young lady entered my info into their database and told me that my rebate was accepted and approved and I should have my check within 4 weeks. I sent it in right after Xmas.

Nice!

I guess I should ask before I make a blind purchase: does anyone here currently have the Oppo and the Zenith connected? If so, how's it look?

In that same vein, I'm curious as to whether anyone has a Samsung HD850 connected via Component (with the 1080i remote hack) and how it looks.

I'm contemplating going with the Zenith DVB318 or the Samsung to utilize the 1080i upconvert via component (since I have the HDMI utilized by my D* HD STB)

JoeQ--my HDTIVO will be arriving anyday now (already have another one for my 50" Toshiba HD RPTV) so I can't wait to see if the PQ improves/decreases from my current Samsung TS-360 STB via HDMI....or if the green tint issue lessens with a different STB.

I have the Samsung HD850 with this set and have tried the 1080i component connection. I switched it to HDMI because I thought it looked "slightly" better but my brother swears it's all in my head since he saw no difference. I think you can use either one and you'll be happy.

As for HD content WOW... I don't watch SD TV because it's extrememly dissapointing compared to HD. Here in L.A. we get all the major networks in HD so that helps out with watching all my favorite shows in HD. Oh, and the Discovery HD channel rocks....

I have the Samsung HD850 with this set and have tried the 1080i component connection. I switched it to HDMI because I thought it looked "slightly" better but my brother swears it's all in my head since he saw no difference. I think you can use either one and you'll be happy.

As for HD content WOW... I don't watch SD TV because it's extrememly dissapointing compared to HD. Here in L.A. we get all the major networks in HD so that helps out with watching all my favorite shows in HD. Oh, and the Discovery HD channel rocks....

Thanks for the reply. The Sammy is on sale at a certain big box retailer who's initials start with 2 C's (I think I can say that....but anything else beyond that and I think it'll be deleted) :eek:

The Zenith DVB318 is more expensive on Ebay and the few retailers I've found who carry it online for a price comparable to the 850 aren't notable (or in my book reputable) carriers. I think Best Buy online has the Zenith, but it's a far cry above where I *think* I'd want to go for another DVD player.....unless the 1080i over Component was night and day above the Sammy....

Coolmjr---I noticed your post after I made my initial post about the Samsung. Was the firmware upgrade difficult on the Zenith?

jaypb-heard on $200 rebate

I sent mine in after Thanksgiving and received it in the mail four weeks later. Quite efficient.

Jay, I got the Zenith DVB318 when it first came out so I got one that had the 1080i over component from the factory. I did hear that they had stopped it in the later versions. But I have read people putting the older firmware sucessfully.

Jay, I got the Zenith DVB318 when it first came out so I got one that had the 1080i over component from the factory. I did hear that they had stopped it in the later versions. But I have read people putting the older firmware sucessfully.

Count me as one of those. New DVB318 but very happy with the older firmware and the component upconversion. When both Component and DVI are connected though (using HDMI adapter), I lose the DVI. I have the Z42 EDTV so upconversion is less impressive for me than what you guys see with the 50" HD for sure. But I have no complaints.

Every Cable tech who has come to the house trying to resolve some long standing Cablecard issues with Comcast here in Montgomery County just loves the look of these Zeniths. They use a Panasonic HD for the test set at the office and see some great sets on the job but they all praise the in-house calibrated picture they see with the Zenith on my set.

The 50" HD has to be the best bargain on the market IMO.

Jay, I got the Zenith DVB318 when it first came out so I got one that had the 1080i over component from the factory. I did hear that they had stopped it in the later versions. But I have read people putting the older firmware sucessfully.

I'm leaning towards the Zenith based on what I've been reading online. Added to the fact that it's a matching brand to the TV and I'll lean a little heavier. I'm in the process of changing out some of my components (awaiting delivery of an HDTIVO as well as getting ready to Ebay my RCA DVR/DVD player). With the looming arrival of HD_DVD's I don't want to spend *too* much on a DVD player....but the likelihood of me replacing the majority of my current DVD collection with HD-DVD's is far off in the distance...hence the reason why I want to get a more than decent upconverting DVD player that plays over the component connections.

Thanks.

Count me as one of those. New DVB318 but very happy with the older firmware and the component upconversion. When both Component and DVI are connected though (using HDMI adapter), I lose the DVI. I have the Z42 EDTV so upconversion is less impressive for me than what you guys see with the 50" HD for sure. But I have no complaints.

Every Cable tech who has come to the house trying to resolve some long standing Cablecard issues with Comcast here in Montgomery County just loves the look of these Zeniths. They use a Panasonic HD for the test set at the office and see some great sets on the job but they all praise the in-house calibrated picture they see with the Zenith on my set.

The 50" HD has to be the best bargain on the market IMO.

ClarkeBar

Have you noticed any screen formatting issues when viewing over component on your Zenith? I've read a few threads that mention either a loss of the upper RH side of the image or a line running down one of the sides of the screen that is "there" on the upconversion over component but not on the DVI output.

Just curious---also got your PM and will reply when I get a chance to go back into the SM. Am thinking about having an ISF calibration done on the TV since I just don't have the time/energy to futz with it! I've never had a calibration done on my other 3 HDTV's but since this one has quickly become the "main" TV in the house, I'm leaning towards having someone come in and work some magic.... ;)

Still loving this set, although I have it really dark and on low-power, to get to the 100 hour mark.

A related question I have is: what does the "orbiter" function do? Should I be able to see it at work? I can definitely see that whole white-screen effect, but I know that's not something to do often; more like a last result.

Last night, I turned my settings up for an hour (c'mon, LOST was on!) to regular power and set 30s and low 40s for Brightness and Contrast. This took only about 20 seconds or so, no more than 30. For a few minutes after, even at those low settings, I could see the ghost of the menu. Is this normal? I have "Orbiter" selected, but don't know what it does or if it's even doing "it" at all. Sorry if that's a stupid question!

Still loving this set, although I have it really dark and on low-power, to get to the 100 hour mark.

A related question I have is: what does the "orbiter" function do? Should I be able to see it at work? I can definitely see that whole white-screen effect, but I know that's not something to do often; more like a last result.

Last night, I turned my settings up for an hour (c'mon, LOST was on!) to regular power and set 30s and low 40s for Brightness and Contrast. This took only about 20 seconds or so, no more than 30. For a few minutes after, even at those low settings, I could see the ghost of the menu. Is this normal? I have "Orbiter" selected, but don't know what it does or if it's even doing "it" at all. Sorry if that's a stupid question!

I have mine set to "orbiter" but I haven't seen any "movement" like the manual states. I'm thinking it's just a slight shifting/jutter that isn't perceivable?

The "staticness" of the on-screen menu that you talk about is one of the reasons I haven't delved too heavily into the service menu at this point.

I do have a question that I haven't seen anyone answer (I posted it earlier in the thread) nor have I seen anyone complain about it:

How are those of you WITHOUT one for all/Macro remotes switching inputs (i.e you want to watch a DVD or you want to go from your HDMI input to your OTA input) when you watch to watch something different? Are you simply hitting the remote button on the top right to "toggle" between inputs? Or do you pull the menu up and switch from the input source option?

I was hoping that those inputs WITH NOTHING hooked up wouldn't come up when I hit the button in the upper RH corner of the remote....or at the least I was hoping for a quick way to "skip" those inputs not in use....OR I was hoping that the "flashback" button on the remote would take me back to my previous input. But that (apparently) doesn't happen. I'm able to use the "previous" button on both my Philips HDTV's and Toshiba's in this fashion.

:confused:

I think you are right about the Orbiter.

(From the specs of a Panny plasma)

"Burn-in reduction via an orbiter function that slowly, but imperceptibly, moves the image about three pixels"

Still, that menu, even with the settings really low, stayed there long enough to give me the heebie-jeebies (sorry to use such a complex, technical term!) :)

I'm contemplating going with the Zenith DVB318 or the Samsung to utilize the 1080i upconvert via component (since I have the HDMI utilized by my D* HD STB)

JoeQ--my HDTIVO will be arriving anyday now (already have another one for my 50" Toshiba HD RPTV) so I can't wait to see if the PQ improves/decreases from my current Samsung TS-360 STB via HDMI....or if the green tint issue lessens with a different STB.

Does the TV have the Green tint issue when using ither source material?
By that I mean, DVD Player,TV's own ATSC tuner,PC,etc.

Also,
Check this place out for a great price on an HDMI switch. I ordered the 4 way switch the other day.

http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=101&cp_id=10106&cs_id=1010602&p_id=2721&style=&seq=1&format=1#largeimage


Interesting - when I saw this and called the other day, he said that the backorder was 1/11 and it would ship yesterday. Now it shows January 25.

I better call him.

Does the TV have the Green tint issue when using ither source material?
By that I mean, DVD Player,TV's own ATSC tuner,PC,etc.

Also,
Check this place out for a great price on an HDMI switch. I ordered the 4 way switch the other day.

http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=101&cp_id=10106&cs_id=1010602&p_id=2721&style=&seq=1&format=1#largeimage


Interesting - when I saw this and called the other day, he said that the backorder was 1/11 and it would ship yesterday. Now it shows January 25.

I better call him.

The Green tint/coloring/haze issue is there on other source material as well...but, as always, with an HD feed it's nearly imperceptible. Most noticeable on dark scenes or black and white movies on SD feeds. VERY noticeable on an HD viewing of "Son of the Mask" (or whatever the title was) on HBO-HD (over component as well as HDMI via my D* Samsung HD STB).

Also very noticeable when we were watching "ELF" via my RCA DVD player over component...and on playback of recorded material from the RCA DVD/DVR over component.

I lowered the G-cut/G-gain values in the SM for the HDMI input from 196 or so to 183 (can't remember the #'s off the top of my head) and ironically when I went into the SM on the COMPONENT input, the value of "183" was seen there as well. Which is why I had asked if the TV stored SM values in memory not by INPUT but by resolution (i.e HD resolution/inputs in total vs SD resolution/inputs in total).

It's more manageable now, and as I said I just haven't had time to go back in and futz with it because I actually want to WATCH TV .... :D

I'm hoping to see if the HDTIVO will give a *different* picture quality. I even swapped out the cables for both my current D* STB (DVI---->HDMI) and my current DVR/DVD player (different component cables tried)....still had a green haze on SD/Black and white stuff.

Hence the reasoning behind bringing in someone to calibrate it. Trust me, I have no problem playing with SM's and what not (and I don't like parting with $$$), but the fact that I had more time when I got my other TV's to play around with settings/values as opposed to how pressed for time I am now and it's why I'm leaning towards just going with the ISF calibration.... :eek:

Jason,

Before you go that route set a few minutes aside and get with me on those numbers. You may well have to dial back more than you have already. Some of my changes were considerably larger than what you posted.

Jason,

Before you go that route set a few minutes aside and get with me on those numbers. You may well have to dial back more than you have already. Some of my changes were considerably larger than what you posted.

Appreciate it. I'll try and pop into the SM tonight if possible and PM you with Menu options/values.

Trust me: I want to work on it myself (instead of spending the cash), but finding the time is the issue.... :)

Appreciate it. I'll try and pop into the SM tonight if possible and PM you with Menu options/values.



Can you do us all a favor when you are done?

It does not matter whether the settings are right or wrong but if they don't fry the TV, please post your settings in a logically titled post in:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=604282

A little info is better than NONE.


I started the same thing for my now sold 52" DLP on Hometheaterspot but got very little activity. I guess that was a combo of the fact that the Hometheaterspot is mostly for MITS TV's and you have to be a paid sponsor to get into the tweaks area where I had placed the info.


I am noticing not a lot of hits on the above thread as well and I am a bit surprised that the one about the PC did NOT generate more interest.

Thanks,
Joe

Chilidog, did you try a different DVD player? If so which one and how did it turn out?

Can you do us all a favor when you are done?

It does not matter whether the settings are right or wrong but if they don't fry the TV, please post your settings in a logically titled post in:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=604282

A little info is better than NONE.


I started the same thing for my now sold 52" DLP on Hometheaterspot but got very little activity. I guess that was a combo of the fact that the Hometheaterspot is mostly for MITS TV's and you have to be a paid sponsor to get into the tweaks area where I had placed the info.


I am noticing not a lot of hits on the above thread as well and I am a bit surprised that the one about the PC did NOT generate more interest.

Thanks,
Joe

No problemo. As I said earlier, I never got out to buy the OFA remote. So I'll post what I see based on me using the "menu" "menu" (remote/front of PDP) method to enter the SM.

Can you do us all a favor when you are done?

It does not matter whether the settings are right or wrong but if they don't fry the TV, please post your settings in a logically titled post in:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=604282

A little info is better than NONE.


I started the same thing for my now sold 52" DLP on Hometheaterspot but got very little activity. I guess that was a combo of the fact that the Hometheaterspot is mostly for MITS TV's and you have to be a paid sponsor to get into the tweaks area where I had placed the info.


I am noticing not a lot of hits on the above thread as well and I am a bit surprised that the one about the PC did NOT generate more interest.

Thanks,
Joe

Hey Joe;

I agree with you. about sharing any info. I am basically running off the settings you put out there in your thread and picture looks great. I am in the same boat about not having the time and/or eye to tweak this baby out. So any help from the Folks who have this set are greatly appreciated.

Thanks

-Joe

Chilidog, did you try a different DVD player? If so which one and how did it turn out?
I hooked up my Sony 480p player (DVP-NS775V), and the color banding / blockiness that was so prevalent with the HD850 was almost non-existent. Makes me wish I hadn't dropped $150 on the Samsung... :mad:

Wow, the marriage of DVD and the Zenith plasma is tricky at best!

My Pioneer universal player looked like crap on the Batman Begins "torture test" (see pic in earlier post this thread). This was progressive scan via component.

I picked up a Sony DVPNS70H and ran that through the HDMI and the results were better, but ultimately, not what I had hoped. Instead of all that banding and distinct rings tinged with pinks and greens, I now have much less banding and a faint haze with hints of pinks and greens.

I was hoping the Samsung HD850 would be a better choice, particularly since it can be hacked to upscale over component, but from ChiliDog's experience, maybe that's not the best option. That's a bummer, as it comes with the HDMI cable, making it a much better price than the Sony. :(

So... any ideas about a sub-$200.00 player that will really shine on this television? I was thinking about the Oppo as I thought that upconversion was a must, but now it seems that some 480p players may look really good as well. At this point, I am totally lost as to which player to get. I'll keep my Pioneer for DVD-Audio and SACD, but I really need a better option for movies. Suggestions are greatly appreciated!

So... any ideas about a sub-$200.00 player that will really shine on this television? I was thinking about the Oppo as I thought that upconversion was a must, but now it seems that some 480p players may look really good as well. At this point, I am totally lost as to which player to get. I'll keep my Pioneer for DVD-Audio and SACD, but I really need a better option for movies. Suggestions are greatly appreciated!

Hi Ed;

Get the Zenith DVB318 (1080i over component). I tried it last night with the Batman Begins and the scenes you are talking about look good. There is a slight hint of the effects that you talk about but that probably can be tweaked out. Anyway the rest of the movie looks great as do all the other DVDs I tried. Try checking Amazon for it.

Good Luck.

-Joe

So... any ideas about a sub-$200.00 player that will really shine on this television? Suggestions are greatly appreciated!


Do any of you folks mess with HTPC's?

If you don't know what the acronym stands for then that answers my question:)

There are several options if you are setup with an HTPC.

I have 4 or 5 options that I am going to try out on my HTPC and see which one works best on the torture test.

BTW, all of these 'options' will upscale the DVD to 720P (or 1080i ) as well as do the deinterlacing aka 480P

I'll give a holler on my results.

BTW, I am almost done my first kick butt screen saver for this TV that uses photos that are at least 1280 x 720 Pixels.
When I am done, anyone that is interested can get it from my website which I will post .

There will ultimately be at least 3 to cover 3 different Themese (Scenic,artsy,Outer Space.)

My 10 picture (all that I have found which meet my requirements so far) screen saver really looks awesome on the TV. I have gotten a lot of comments from friends and neighbors about how great a 50" picture on the wall looks.

Joe

Hey guys,

A couple days ago I ran my VE DVD and got almost the exact same results with my settings as Joe did. Only difference was my HDMI input which Joe had his color down to 24, mine stayed on par with component at around 53/54.

The red push issue I had is pretty much gone, and without a doubt this TV looks much better the the ISF calibrated 65' Mits I had.

Now we just need to get the advanced menu settings down.

Joe Q,

I just finished going through this forum with HTPC in mind. My primary concern is how to incorporate an HTPC. I've got an HTPC with all of my movies and music on it that I want to make sure I can still use! My old TV took DVI and VGA at 1280x720, I'm trying to pick the best setup for this TV.

I'd be using TT for movies. I don't think I'd like the stretch with 1024x720 resolution on a movie. How did 1280x768 look? I'm thinking my best bet would be to run 1280x720 (using underscan in the nvidia drivers) with a DVI->HDMI adapter, but would appreciate any comments.

I'd love to see your screen saver once I get the TV (hopefully today) and get it set up.

Thanks,
Brett

I'd be using TT for movies. I don't think I'd like the stretch with 1024x720 resolution on a movie. How did 1280x768 look? I'm thinking my best bet would be to run 1280x720 (using underscan in the nvidia drivers) with a DVI->HDMI adapter, but would appreciate any comments.

I'd love to see your screen saver once I get the TV (hopefully today) and get it set up.



My HDMI switcher showed up today. GREAT service and an even greater price for the 4 port one that I got from http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=101&cp_id=10106&cs_id=1010602&p_id=2721&style=&seq=1&format=1#largeimage

I say Great service because I ordered it on Monday and the website said it was backordered until 1/11 so I figured I would not get it until next week yet it came from California to Maryland in only 3 days and I got it today - a Saturday delivery.

Thought I would put a plug in for them. They are an avsforum sponsor and you will probably be giving them a call for an HDMI switch for this TV due to only having one HDMI input.

I now have my HTPC's Radeon 9600 DVI connection,my MYHD DVI daughtercard and my HDTIVO's HDMI connection ALL connected to this switch.


Since the switch is IR controllable, it was easy to make macros on my remote control to setup the correct audio,HDMI port # and select HDMI on the TV for all 3 of these sources.


I agree 100% with your comments about the 1024x768 setting since 1) that setting does not give us all the pixels this TV is capable of and 2) it is not a 16x9 scale

I of course have my VGA output form the HTPC going to the RGB input on the TV in 1024x768 mode as that is a nice default config to use when you are using a PC with no monitor like I am doing.

I am running 1280x720P on the DVI output rom the HTPC and I do get some overscan.
I have been able to correct it a lot with the new (thanks to gby for the tip) Service mode.
Still not 100% perfect but I doubt anyone will be able to tell that the picture is missing 1/3 of a Windows desktop Icon's worth of data in a movie.

There is another resolution(1248x702) which I was using on the component input on the TV via the 720P compnent dongle on the Radeon which had NO overscan.
However, on the HDMI input, so far, I can not get the TV to sync on that one.
IE. it will sync the 1248x702 on Component but NOT on the HDMI input.

It got late and I gave up trying but I suspect if it took the 1280x720P setting which the RGB input will NOT, I will be able to get the HDMI to work at that resolution.


Like you I am using TT for movies or MYHD. I still think MYHD has a tad better picture than TT but it won't properly play movies from my HDTIVO but TT will so I need them both.



Too many words,I know and if you are like me, you probably skipped half of them.
Sorry for rambling.

Joe Q-

Yep, it's late. Bronco's won (I live in Denver)! Redskins lost (Sorry if that is your team, being from Maryland).

I did manage to get this TV today, just an hour and a half before the game. Hooked up the component input and watched a beautiful game (in many ways, seeing as my team won).

I will probably pick up a DVI->HDMI adapter tomorrow and give that a try on this set at 720p res. Let you know how that goes.

Glad you got a good deal on an HDMI switch, I probably will need to go that route at some point, just not yet.

Are you an FFDShow user?

Brett

Joe Q-

Yep, it's late. Bronco's won (I live in Denver)! Redskins lost (Sorry if that is your team, being from Maryland).


Are you an FFDShow user?

Brett

Yes to the second question but not extensively. More from an interest level though.
I am going to build a much faster HTPC because I get some video problems with the more agressive settings in FFDShow.


On the first one - You assume I want the Redksins to win cause I am from Maryland? tsk,tsk.
The Redskins are a DC team. The ONLY reason I wanted them to win was because of Joe Gibbs.

Some of my friends and I have our own name for the Redskins. Replace "Red" with the number after 3

I am a die hard Colts, oops, I mean Ravens fan.
Yeah, I know they stunk this year and I am mad that they did not fire both of the B's .

Some new observations after a few more days of viewing. WOnder if anyone has seen these and/or knows a fix:

1. Sony DVD player via HDMI connection-- every couple of minutes is a kind of white "flash" that stays on screen less than a second. Seems to be confined to lower area of the screen (for some nightmare component moving reasons, I can't test if it also does it via component til Wednesday). My Pioneer player, via component, does not display this behavior. I REALLY hope it's the player and NOT the HDMI connection on the set. We shall see, I suppose.

2. DVD output (both players) doesn't seem to hit the bottom line or two of pixels. Zooming the image does not take it over that area, either. Is this an example of overscan? If so, can this be adjusted in the SM? (maybe "move" the picture down a bit?).

3. On all inputs, no matter what settings I use, there is always a thin black bar on the right side where there should be image content. Overscan also? Anyway, I would like to fix if possible, but it's not driving me nuts or anything. More important, is this going to cause some sort of lasting burn in issue?

Hello all,

I read, in an earlier post, that each input on the Z50PX2D can have it's own picture settings. Does this also include aspect ratio, stretch and zoom type settings as well?

Thanks.

Hello all,

I read, in an earlier post, that each input on the Z50PX2D can have it's own picture settings. Does this also include aspect ratio, stretch and zoom type settings as well?

Thanks.


Yes, it does.

BTW, for those of you who bought this unit within the past 30 days from Circuit City for more than $$$, you can go back and get a price correction. CC is selling this unit for $$$ this weekend. I think Best Buy has the same price, but not sure if BB has the same price match guarantee.

It's too late for me, but some of you can get the 110% price match! Good luck!

EDIT>>

mod note: no price other than MSRP, please. Thanks

thx mfan.

This set is looking better and better...

Yes, it does.

BTW, for those of you who bought this unit within the past 30 days from Circuit City for more than $$$, you can go back and get a price correction. CC is selling this unit for $$$ this weekend. I think Best Buy has the same price, but not sure if BB has the same price match guarantee.

It's too late for me, but some of you can get the 110% price match! Good luck!

EDIT>>

mod note: no price other than MSRP, please. Thanks


Sorry about that!! Will try hard to keep this in mind in the future.... :p

But, you have to admit, it's an amazing price for a 50" HD plasma that comes with both QAM and ATSC/NTSC tuners and supports HTPC... ;)

Of course, in 6 months, this will probably be the going price for any 50"... :cool:

I have been following this set for a while and am very close to pulling the trigger. My one issue is that observing it alongside a panny, philips, samsung and even a magnavox at my local retailer it is not measuring up to my viewing preference. All televisions are on the same feed. To my eyes the Zenith is losing some of the detail I am seeing in the other sets (fine lines on the leaves on nat'l geographic hd) and there appears to be more "video noise" that I would describe as a grainy appearance. I got ahold of the remote and played around with contrast, sharpness, etc. but they didnt seem to make much difference. I just did not find any other settings such as a noise reduction or 3d filter or anything like that. Given the favorable reviews from everyone on this forum I feel like there must be something I could work on to try and bring the picture closer to the other sets and put my mind at ease. While I do not expect it to match the Panny for a price that is so much lower, I would expect it to at least match the cheaper magnavox. It just lacks that immersive PQ that I am seeing on the others. Any suggestions on what I can try in-store to see if I can reduce some of the grainy appearance and bring out a little more detail?

I felt the same way at my local CC. Pulled the trigger anyway and now really love the set. With a good feed, this set is capable of looking very, very good.

One thing that I did on this set that I have NEVER done on a set, is turn up the sharpness. On this set, it makes a huge difference. I can tell you, IMO, there is very little noise or grain in any of the images at home-- at the store, I felt otherwise. Maybe some sets just handle that nasty in-store feed better, who knows?

There are definitely better TVs out there, but I don't think you'll find a better overall value. The slight difference in PQ, to me, is not worth the extra $$$ (particularly if you pick this up at CC this week-end...great sale price!).

How does this Zenith compare with the Phillips 50" HD Plasma, Model #50PF7220A/37? It goes on sale at Costco in a few days. It will be the same price as the Zenith. Any comments?

How does this Zenith compare with the Phillips 50" HD Plasma, Model #50PF7220A/37? It goes on sale at Costco in a few days. It will be the same price as the Zenith. Any comments?

Yeah, I thought about that one for a long time last week because I was still within my 30 day return period then. I searched hi/low for comments & reviews, but there weren't many. I did read a few that said the Philips lacked details, its black wasn't dark enough, and it only had the older version of PixelPlus, so it's processing wasn't as good...blah, blah, blah. In the end, I decided against changing because I've been happy with the Zenith and didn't want to go thru the trouble of returning and buying another set that I may not be as happy with...

Yeah, I thought about that one for a long time last week because I was still within my 30 day return period then. I searched hi/low for comments & reviews, but there weren't many. I did read a few that said the Philips lacked details, its black wasn't dark enough, and it only had the older version of PixelPlus, so it's processing wasn't as good...blah, blah, blah. In the end, I decided against changing because I've been happy with the Zenith and didn't want to go thru the trouble of returning and buying another set that I may not be as happy with...

Thank you for your analysis. Now, I have another question for you or anyone else. How does the Zenith compare with the Vizio that is currently at Costco?

There are definitely better TVs out there, but I don't think you'll find a better overall value. The slight difference in PQ, to me, is not worth the extra $$$ (particularly if you pick this up at CC this week-end...great sale price!).

I'll go so far as to say that a friend of mine who was in the market for a plasma had the decency to consult with me <G> at the same time I was purchasing the Z....and I told him about it....and he pulled the trigger on it. He had it delivered yesterday...and couldn't stop raving about the picture quality of HD programs as well as DVD playback. So I feel "gratified" that someone else (who has owned previous HD sets) agrees with me on the PQ of this set out of the box.

One further question for those who purchased this set at CC: I was pm'ing back and
forth with another thread participant about whether or not the duration of CC's price match guarantee is indeed only 30 days for CC Visa purchasers....or if it's longer. IOW's, if you used the Circuit City Credit Card to purchase this particular TV (or any other for that matter) is it still a 30 day price match.....or is it 60 days?

And it FINALLY hit me that I have a OFA remote in the house....but lo and behold it's a model WITHOUT a * key on it (URC6131B00)...so much for that. And, to rub more salt on my wounds, while I was out at LOWES I came across a universal ZENITH replacement remote with a learning (*) key (zn5dss) so I picked it up....got it home....and after futzing with it I realized that it's not the same as a OFA remote as far as the *018, *019 method. So much for that :mad:

JoeQ---I did have time today to hook up an HDTIVO I picked up on EBAY....and via HDMI the pic quality seems MUCH better AFA the green tint/push. Now I just have to try and hook up a DIFFERENT DVD player via Component to see how that looks (still have my eye on the DVB318---but my wallet is crying about it :eek: )

Eddiwill---re: the HDMI flashing you commented on: I too noticed this on the D* Samsung HD STB I just deactivated. It was hooked up via a DVI---->HDMI cable. Every 10=15 seconds there would be this "flash" on the lower 1/3rd of the screen, that was VERY easy to miss if you were blinking or just plain not concentrating. It seemed to come and go. Didn't notice it on component at all...and didn't notice it at ALL sometimes. Were you using a DVI---->HDMI connection? I was worried about it....but now that I have the HDTIVO hooked up via HDMI--->HDMI I haven't seen it yet.

jaypb,
That was using HDMI. Funny thing, though: just watched a movie with the kids and the flash (which is, btw, EXACTLY as you describe) did not happen at all. Not once. Strange...

I am going to test tomorrow, because now that I think about it, I was in "Cinema Zoom" mode when this occurred before (trying not to have any black bars for awhile). Perhaps something in the Zooming? The DVD that didn't have rthe problem was enhanced for 16 X 9 and therefore filled the screen. I haven't connected anyhing else via the HDMI; my D* HD install is Wednesday, I'll test that then.

Thanks for your reply on your in-store experience, eddiwill. I hadnt thought about the fact that certain sets might handle a poor feed better than others.

I did play around with the sharpness quite a bit, although I dont think I adjusted the contrast at all so I will go take another look tomorrow. This really does seem like a great set for the money. I think if it had detachable speakers I would have jumped already...I am just trying to decide how much value to put on competing 50 inch plasmas with smaller dimensions that would fit my room better and a slightly better in-store PQ. Right now the difference in price is pretty substantial.

jaypb,

just put in LOTR, which is letterboxed, and viola-- the dreaded flashes. I am going to watch another film tomorrow (one that fills screen again) and test the teory. So far, looks like a problem with the TV playing letterboxed (via HDMI) :-(

I'm really tempted by this set too. Best buy currently has it for $$$, and I have a coupon for another 10% off, so I can get this down to around $$$ + tax. Pretty good deal for a 50" plasma.

Looks like CC has for $$$ as well, but no mail in rebate to hassle with..

EDIT>>

mod note: no price other than MSRP, please. Thanks

I'm really tempted by this set too. Best buy currently has it for $$$, and I have a coupon for another 10% off, so I can get this down to around $$$ + tax. Pretty good deal for a 50" plasma.

Looks like CC has for $$$ as well, but no mail in rebate to hassle with..

EDIT>>

mod note: no price other than MSRP, please. Thanks

What Best Buy Coupon for 10% off do you have? How did you get it?

mod note..

Coupon talk, especially specific coupon talk, is not allowed.

Thanks all

Hello Everyone

I have been following this thread for quite some time. I will probably be pulling the trigger today as with the current sale prices on both CC and BB I don't think it will get any cheaper for a while. I do have one question, is this just a 720p display or is it alos 1080i? I know that certain HD channels broadcast @ 1080i and just wanted to confirm. I can't wait, i hope the wife still has a possitive thought on the purchase. I will be getting rid of a 42" projection that is around 22" deep and she does not like the idea of the TV overwhelming the family room. Any additional input would be appreciated. One last thing, should the extended service plan be purchassed?

elfedz

Has anyone else noticed this "flash" that jaypb and I have noticed? I am fearing this may be the set's HDMI since I noticed it on a DVD player with HDMI/HDMI and jaypb saw it with a set-top box DVI/HMDI. Looks like the only thing in common is the Zenith's HDMI connection. I still need to see if, in my case, it occurs only with letterboxed material. I am pretty sure that last night 's showing of "Space Jam" (my kids STILL love that film--me too I'm afraid), which is 16 x 9 enhanced, did not display the flashes, but afterwards, LOTRFOTR, which has the bars, flashed quite a bit. (also, changing the ratio with the remote to one of the zooms will also cause the flash

Anyone who knows more about HDMI than me care to comment? That would be about 99.9% of the folks here :)

I have this problem as well. It comes and goes. Last night it was doing it regularly while watching tnthd. This morning the tv was fine. I have a motorola moxi hd dvr box hooked up via component one input. I'm going to try the other inputs.

Has anyone else noticed this "flash" that jaypb and I have noticed? I am fearing this may be the set's HDMI since I noticed it on a DVD player with HDMI/HDMI and jaypb saw it with a set-top box DVI/HMDI. Looks like the only thing in common is the Zenith's HDMI connection. I still need to see if, in my case, it occurs only with letterboxed material. I am pretty sure that last night 's showing of "Space Jam" (my kids STILL love that film--me too I'm afraid), which is 16 x 9 enhanced, did not display the flashes, but afterwards, LOTRFOTR, which has the bars, flashed quite a bit. (also, changing the ratio with the remote to one of the zooms will also cause the flash

Anyone who knows more about HDMI than me care to comment? That would be about 99.9% of the folks here :)

I was using a generic DVI--->HDMI ebay purchased cable when I had my D* Samsung HD receiver hookedup. Never noticed the flash when viewing via Component.

Now I have an HD Tivo hooked up via HDMI and have NOT seen ANY flashes on screen when watching programming (around 3 hours worth last night).

Will tell the wife to keep an eye on it today, as once I pointed out the "flashing" to her last week she saw it whenever I did.

Has anyone else noticed this "flash" that jaypb and I have noticed? I am fearing this may be the set's HDMI since I noticed it on a DVD player with HDMI/HDMI and jaypb saw it with a set-top box DVI/HMDI. Looks like the only thing in common is the Zenith's HDMI connection.

I have had my set for about 2 months now and I have never seen this flash that you refer to.

Granted, 99.9% of my viewing is from the HDTIVO connected to the HDMI input but you folks are saying your DVD player is the source that seems to cause this.

After setting up my new toy, the 4 port HDMI switch, I now have 3 sources going into the HDMI connection and I will keep my eye out for this flash.

My upconverting DVD player is MYHD going through the HDMI switch so it is different.
Same deal with the HTPC. I am running 1280x720 from the DVI connection on the graphics card and use TheaterTek for DVD's (sometimes)

I have had my set for about 2 months now and I have never seen this flash that you refer to.

Granted, 99.9% of my viewing is from the HDTIVO connected to the HDMI input but you folks are saying your DVD player is the source that seems to cause this.

After setting up my new toy, the 4 port HDMI switch, I now have 3 sources going into the HDMI connection and I will keep my eye out for this flash.

My upconverting DVD player is MYHD going through the HDMI switch so it is different.
Same deal with the HTPC. I am running 1280x720 from the DVI connection on the graphics card and use TheaterTek for DVD's (sometimes)

JoeQ--my source was my D* Samsung STB. So it's more of an issue with the HDMI port/"area" me thinks. But what sets it off is the question.

On a related note, what are you keeping your HDTIVO'S output resolution on? 720 or 1080? Just curious....

Thanks!

jaypb-- jimbr says he is having the flash issue via component... so it looks like it's more than just HDMI-related...

Wish we could find some constant here. I would HATE to take this set back. :confused:

jaypb-- jimbr says he is having the flash issue via component... so the looks like it's more than just HDMI-related... I wonder if it's the aspect ratio.
l
jimbr, is it only black bar material that gives you the f lases, or ful screen also? I'm just looking for some constant here. I would HATE to take this set back.

Interesting stuff. I keep the set on 16:9 when viewing via HDMI as well as Component. And I seemed to notice the flashes more on D*'s HD channels (i.e HBO-HD, SHO-HD, HDNET etc...) whereas you were seeing it on DVD programs that are letterboxed. Could it be an HDCP issue? I'm not too knowledgeable AFA the technical aspects of copy protection and whatnot...but I seem to recall it being an issue on HD paychannels vs. SD paychannels when the issue did crop up.

:confused:

Actually, I JUST noticed it on a full screen DVD, but only after I cycled through the ratios a few times. Before I did that, all seemed well. I'll have to check again from the beginning. arghhhhhh....

I did notice that quickly cycling through the ratios will also cause a flash. Can you confirm on yours (looks like it will flash when getting back to 16 x 9)

Update:
Yep, it's on all content, regardless of aspect ratio.

Actually, I JUST noticed it on a full screen DVD, but only after I cycled through the ratios a few times. Before I did that, all seemed well. I'll have to check again from the beginning. arghhhhhh....

I did notice that quickly cycling through the ratios will also cause a flash. Can you confirm on yours (looks like it will flash when getting back to 16 x 9)

Oddly enough, I've NEVER even moved the ratio from 16x9 to anything else. I'll have to give it a shot tonight.

On a related note of cycling....how do you switch inputs with the Zenith remote when you want to go from say....your HDMI DVD player to your Component STB or the OTA internal tuner? Do you just cycle through the inputs with the upper right hand corner button on the remote? Or do you go into the menu and do it from there? I'm just wondering WTF they didn't think to allow you to get from input to input with less button pushes then to cycle or enter the menu and do it. I know a OFA or Harmony remote can be programmed to do it in less button pushes....but, damn, I've all universal remoted out..... :D

but I seem to recall it being an issue on HD paychannels vs. SD paychannels when the issue did crop up.



Please point us to a post where this was brought up as I never heard of this issue until the past few posts and withing the last 24 hours

Joe

Please point us to a post where this was brought up as I never heard of this issue until the past few posts and withing the last 24 hours

Joe

Sorry for any murkiness in my explanation: The flashing I experienced was on the D* Paychannels as opposed to the SD (non-HD) paychannels or SD (non-HD) D* channels in general. Didn't mean to imply that it was a *known* issue....other than in my hacienda.... :p

I was viewing a 16x9 hd feed from tnthd in aspect ratio set by program yesterday when it happened. I also had the flashing problem with a samsung 325 upconverting dvd player recorder thru the hdmi input. I've since returned the dvd player due to audio skipping issues.

I did notice that quickly cycling through the ratios will also cause a flash. Can you confirm on yours (looks like it will flash when getting back to 16 x 9)



Don't take this the wrong way but if I even bothered to try to replicate this, it sure would not be a reason to return something.

Haven't you ever tried an 'oddball' combo of things with a newly designed piece of gear and found that it got itself into some wierd mode?

My Yamaha DSP-A1, for example, will many times (but not always) magically go into and get stuck in DTS mode on my DVD player's input and require a power cycle to get it 'unstuck' IF I quickly cycle between a DD and a Prologic input source.

It has been doing this ever since I bought it brand new when the DSP-A1 first came out. That thing cost me $2400 years ago but I was not about to get rid of it for something else all because of one fluke in it's operation. I liked the device better than anything I had checked out when hunting for a high end receiver so why would I ditch it?

Heck, even my Z's automatic transmission does a wierd thing where it downshifts and stays in 3rd gear if you let off the accelerator in just the right position when accelerating at the near redline point.
Everyone with an Automatic 2005 Nissan 350Z knows it does this and there is even a TSB out on it but Nissan is not going to replace the transmission. The TSB says to the effect 'Tell customer - don't do that'

My point is that you can find LOTS of things that do wierd things but it does not effect the operation of the thing.

If cycling through all the ratios on the Zenith causes it to flash momentarily then so what?
I thought you had found a TRUE problem with the set.

Which brings me back to the other problem we are trying to figure out.

To me that rainbow effect in the fog on Chapter 33 is a true problem on this set IF it does not do that on other TV sets ie. If it is not a bad disc master issue on that scene.

Not a problem that would make me return this set but I can certainly understand someone else who watched a lot of DVD's care a LOT about this.

The interesting thing is that I was watching some program that was a SD program last night (forget what it was - I think it was some segment on Fox Cable news)
and I saw that same exact raindow effect for about 15 seconds during some scene that was being shown.


Never have seen it on any of the HD stuff from Directv

There IS a problem with the set, as observed by the 3 of us reporting it (or, two be more precise, the sets the 3 of us have).

I mentioned the cycling between ratios simply as ONE way to ALWAYS get a flash on my set. The problem of the flash occurring during DVDs via my HDMI connection is totally random. I just found it interesting that the flash I get when cycling looks so much like the ones we are reporting otherwise.

I'm just wondering WTF they didn't think to allow you to get from input to input with less button pushes then to cycle or enter the menu and do it.


Cause it is a base model set with an amazing price for a 50" Plasma with an ATSC tuner:)

There IS a problem with the set, as observed by the 3 of us reporting it (or, two be more precise, the sets the 3 of us have).



I have never seen this effect on my set.


I bet they have sold a zillion of these sets by now so you could get a decent statistical sample now. Why not post a POll?

Why don't you write a short description of the effect and how to replicate it and make a poll to see how many are having this problem.

May you could also ask folks to add in their serial number so we can see if this is only on a particular batch of a production run?

Mine will do it when I cycle as well, but the issue I have is random and has happened thru hdmi, the on air tuner and component inputs. Today no issues as of yet, but last night it was a regular occurance.

jaypb, jimbir and and I have basically all said the same thing: random white flashes (blink of an eye quick) on the screen. In the case of jaypb and myself (and probably jimbr) they are on the bottom 1/3 of the screen.

Unfortunately, it appears to be random. In my case, if I observe a flash on a DVD movie and go bact to where I saw it occur, mothing happens. The movie will continue to play and there will be more random flashes. It's really odd, as we are different sources and inputs, yet seeing the same thing. Be a lot easier to nail down if we had a constant-- of course, that wouldn't be ANY fun! :)

Joe has an excellent point: maybe the serial numbers can provide us with that constant... back with mine in a few.

Here we go:

Serial 510RMSS029182 with a manufacture date of October 05.

Joe has an excellent point: maybe the serial numbers can provide us with that constant... back with mine in a few.

I'll go ya one better: go into the SM and write down the SW and HW version. If you look at the 50" Settings thread you can see Joe's photos and my listing of my SM screen with the versions on it. IIRC, Joe and I had the EXACT saw hw/sw versions...yet I see it and he doesn't. How bout build dates? that's on the plate on the back of the TV as well.

The plot thickens..... :confused:

About a week after getting the TV I sent an e-mail to Zenith's tech support via a link on their site and had an answer within 6 hours IIRC. Anyone care to give it a shot regarding this issue??

I'll give Zenith support a try. (I'll check HW/SW as well.)

OK, I sent an email to LG/Zenith... I'm not holding my breath for a helpful response (nothing against LG/Zenith, just going on past experiences w/ most companies).

Also, my settings appear to match the one's that Joe posted in the settings thread.

I have not experienced the white flashes on my set. I did have one occurrence where the display was randomly corrupting itself for very brief periods of time (split second). It happened on all sources (component, HDMI) and got worse the longer I left the TV on. Kind of freaked me out a bit. The only thing I could come up with was possibly some type of electrical interference. I'd just finished organizing the rats nest of audio / video and power cords behind my TV and some of my audio / video cords ended up right next to the power cords. I separated the cords and have not seen the effect since. (However, all of that could have been complete coincidence as well. Just throwing that out as a possibility.)

That's something I am looking into as well... I also have the dreaded "rat's nest" behind mine. Plan to fix it during HDTivo install onWednesday. Also, I need to get better surge strip... I have an old bare bones strip that I'm sure isn't up to par... Maybe cord sorting and better strip will take care of it...

That's something I am looking into as well... I also have the dreaded "rat's nest" behind mine. Plan to fix it during HDTivo install onWednesday. Also, I need to get better surge strip... I have an old bare bones strip that I'm sure isn't up to par... Maybe cord sorting and better strip will take care of it...

Glad to see that EVERYONE deals with the "rat's nest" issue.... :D

And I don't even have an A/V system on this set up yet {he shakes his head in disgust}.... :p

I How bout build dates? that's on the plate on the back of the TV as well.



After I wrote the idea of people posting their serial numbers, I realized that was going to be tough for me to do since it is mounted on the wall.

So thanks for the Service menu idea.


Also, about the 'rats nest' wiring:

I spent the entire week after Christmas getting all that AV equipment and the mess of wires organized and hidden away (my company shuts down between Xmas an New Years so I had plenty of time to do it right)

I also have the TV and HDTIVO connected to a battery backed up Power Conditioner which has voltage regulation.
It will switch to the battery if the wall voltage moves too far away from 110.
It also puts out a very good looking Sine wave.
All my other equipment is on the non battery side but they still get the clean AC.

Not suggesting that the flasher's rush out and buy a power conditioner but thought I would highlight a difference in my setup.

The 3 of you now have a nickname:)

Actually, I JUST noticed it on a full screen DVD, but only after I cycled through the ratios a few times. Before I did that, all seemed well. I'll have to check again from the beginning. arghhhhhh....

I did notice that quickly cycling through the ratios will also cause a flash. Can you confirm on yours (looks like it will flash when getting back to 16 x 9)

Update:
Yep, it's on all content, regardless of aspect ratio.


Hmmm... I have never experienced this "flash" in nearly 2 months of usage. I also tried what you described above, but couldn't reproduce it. Granted, I have a very simple setup (moving at the end of this month) with only DVD via component, OTA antenna, and analog cable.

My build date is September 2005. Serial # 509RMQK143436

A week in here of pure bliss, no "flash" or any problems.

Watching the Colts game over the weekend I got my favorite comment so far on this TV. Now I went from a 65' HD Mits to this and the same grough of fellas have watched football over here before.
One guy said he felt like he could "dive right in and make a tackle". That made me feel damn good.
I'm running the new MPEG4 D* through HDMI and component thru my Denon 2900. All with Monster power

I'm running the new MPEG4 D* through HDMI and component thru my Denon 2900.


That was a little bit of a bombshell you dropped. You say that D* has made the switch on some channels to Mpeg4?

This has been talked about as a possibity for quite some time as well as what effect it would have on us HDTIVO owners.

This is the first post I have seen that actually said that D* IS doing Mpeg4.

What channels are affected?
What D* receiver are you using for Mpeg4?
NO one over in the HR10-250 thread has said diddly about Mpeg4 except for the discussion about what happens WHEN it happens and like to be in a year or 2


Thanks

That was a little bit of a bombshell you dropped. You say that D* has made the switch on some channels to Mpeg4?

This has been talked about as a possibity for quite some time as well as what effect it would have on us HDTIVO owners.

This is the first post I have seen that actually said that D* IS doing Mpeg4.

What channels are affected?
What D* receiver are you using for Mpeg4?
NO one over in the HR10-250 thread has said diddly about Mpeg4 except for the discussion about what happens WHEN it happens and like to be in a year or 2


Thanks

IIRC, Detroit was the first *market* to switch over to MPEG-4. If you check either the HD HW or HD programming forums you'll see threads/posts regarding the MPEG 4 receivers. D* is selling the HD-20??? receiver that covers MPEG-4 IIRC. It's "available" at BB and CC too as a matter of fact. Hell, I even think I saw a post somewhere regarding D* offering the 5 LNB dish for installs in the NYC area already.

It's somewhere on these boards. I just haven't "read" what's in the posts as I haven't had the urge to upgrade my equipment *just* yet.....

The D* DVR for MPEG-4 isn't "out" yet....but it should be sometime in the future. How's that for pinning down a date..... :o

Edit: To the best of my limited perusal-atory knowledge, there are NO additional HD channels yet in the MPEG-4 format....if only because I don't think the new sats are broadcasting yet. But, the new dish is "backwards compatible" as is the new HD receiver (meaning it still picks up sat a/b/c.... until the new birds go live)

Or something like that...

New here. First post.

Got this TV at BestBuy real LOW price after rebates which of course includes 4yr performance plan and oh yeah I am getting it delivered free tomorrow!!!!

And oh yeah no interest until 2009 and reward zone (Whatever I get for a real LOW price purchase) points for a new DHMI DVD Player soon! :)

Cant wait to hook it up! I am sure I will be posting questions here shortly. And I will try to search/research first before I do.

Welcome. Glad to see another happy face in the thread. Hopefully you come back and let us know how things go.

Don't be offended if this post is edited soonly, as it's verboten to post prices here....Vegas has set the over/under at 5 minutes before the magic 4 digit #'s above disappear..... :D

What type of provider do you have for HD---cable or satellite?

Welcome. Glad to see another happy face in the thread. Hopefully you come back and let us know how things go.

Don't be offended if this post is edited soonly, as it's verboten to post prices here....Vegas has set the over/under at 5 minutes before the magic 4 digit #'s above disappear..... :D

What type of provider do you have for HD---cable or satellite?

Leave it up to the n00b. Although I dont understand why it is bad to show your price. I mean I got it legally, not illegally. :)

I currently have Charter Communications Cable, hope that works out for me. I live in Katy, TX which is near Houston, so providers are limited.

Leave it up to the n00b. Although I dont understand why it is bad to show your price. I mean I got it legally, not illegally. :)

I currently have Charter Communications Cable, hope that works out for me. I live in Katy, TX which is near Houston, so providers are limited.

Ah, don't worry. I've had posts edited because I used the verbage, "...is SERIOUSLY DISCOUNTED at Circuit City in this week's circular" Endquote.

Go figure.

Either way you should be very happy with the TV as the majority have been so far.

jaypb, jimbir and and I have basically all said the same thing: random white flashes (blink of an eye quick) on the screen. In the case of jaypb and myself (and probably jimbr) they are on the bottom 1/3 of the screen.

Unfortunately, it appears to be random. In my case, if I observe a flash on a DVD movie and go bact to where I saw it occur, mothing happens. The movie will continue to play and there will be more random flashes. It's really odd, as we are different sources and inputs, yet seeing the same thing. Be a lot easier to nail down if we had a constant-- of course, that wouldn't be ANY fun! :)

Joe has an excellent point: maybe the serial numbers can provide us with that constant... back with mine in a few.

New Member here....

I purchased the Zenith in mid-November and have been very pleased with it for the most part; however, I too have noticed flashes/corruption when viewing DVDs via HDMI. I have tried both 1080i or 720P upconverting. The flashes/corruption usually occurs on the bottom 1/3 of the screen. I am using a Toshiba 5980 with a RatShack HDMI Cable. I have the same set up for my Sony 60" and swapped the player and cable but still have random flashes/corruption. I had been fearing an HDMI issue and with other users posting similiar experiences, I believe there truly is an issue here.

To be clear, this only happens while watching DVDs thru the HDMI port.

That was a little bit of a bombshell you dropped. You say that D* has made the switch on some channels to Mpeg4?

This has been talked about as a possibity for quite some time as well as what effect it would have on us HDTIVO owners.

This is the first post I have seen that actually said that D* IS doing Mpeg4.

What channels are affected?
What D* receiver are you using for Mpeg4?
NO one over in the HR10-250 thread has said diddly about Mpeg4 except for the discussion about what happens WHEN it happens and like to be in a year or 2


Thanks
Joe you also can get it, we lucky folks here in MD were able to start Dec. 8th. I like the units HD-20's, I have three of them. Replaced my Sony's HD-300 and 200. I think the only channels using MPEG4 are the new locals.
They look just as good as my antenna did and am very happy overall.

The HD-DVR's with mpeg4 is not due out until early summer my installer told me.

Hmmm... that makes 4 "flashers" here. I think we definitely have an issue, with SOMETHING. Mine is just like JellyBelly's-- so far, it's only on DVDs via HMDI.

I heard back from Zenith support-- basically just said if there's a problem with the set, have it serviced...blah, blah, blah.

What to do, what to do...?

Hmmm... that makes 4 "flashers" here. I think we definitely have an issue, with SOMETHING. Mine is just like JellyBelly's-- so far, it's only on DVDs via HMDI.

I heard back from Zenith support-- basically just said if there's a problem with the set, have it serviced...blah, blah, blah.

What to do, what to do...?

Was the response back from Neil? :D

Eddiwill---were you the one who's supposed to have an HDTIVO installed shortly? Because since I installed my HDTIVO I haven't seen a flash (again==to repeat, my flashes occurred when watching an HD Samsung STB via DVI-=---> HDMI) and this is since Sunday afternoon.

I wonder if the earlier Zenith sets (the 42" EDTV) have and HDMI port? ClarkeBar---do you recall anyone on that thread commenting about such flashes??

Yep; the direcTV guy should be here before lunch tomorrow.

I was planning to run the sat. through HDMI and have the DVD play through component. Went out today and got the Samsung HD850 (which has a hack to upconvert via component). Hopefully, the component video will have a different look than the HMDI which produces some seriously ugly banding on Chaper 33 of Batman Begins, much like my trusty ol' Pioneer I referenced waaaayyy back in this thread. I'll know in a few minutes. Seems I can't win! The Sony "tester" model I bought looked much better than both, but only upconverts via HMDI. Who knows, maybe I'll keep the Sony and run the sat through component.

...and, I'm off topic. Sorry! The flashing is really the critical thing-- for 4 of us, anyway! :)

OK. Here's one for you guys. My Samsung HD850 is connected to the Z via HDMI. I'm then running the audio from the TV (via the optical out) to my receiver. This approach cures a "lip sync" problem I was having with a few DVDs on the HD850. However, I started noticing sporadic audio dropouts -- usually on DVDs that have a DD5.1 soundtrack. At first, I wrote it off to scratched up Netflix DVDs. However, I popped in a brand new copy of SW: Revenge of the Sith and the audio dropped out about 10 times.

Anybody else have a similar setup and experiencing the same problems? I wouldn't be surprised if it's the DVD player that's at fault, but at this point I'm really not sure. I'd be interested in hearing other's experiences with this type of connection.

Chili, I may try that setup tomorrow when I have the installer here.

One thing I know now is that my HD850 is going back tomorrow. I had high hopes for it, but it didn't work out. The Sony actually does the best job out of the 4 DVD players I tested out. Even looks better that all the others running component--MUCH less noise and banding and a more HD-like appearance. Of course, YMMV. :)

One interesting note: NO FLASH on the component playback. So, in 3 of the 4 cases, it's definitely HDMI related.

As stated earlier, I haven't experienced the "flash" problem since I got it almost 2 months ago. However, I have noticed 2 channel related problems this past week, so I want to check if others have the same/similar issues:

1. For some reason, the Fav channel list will "shrink" by itself. I can set up 4 "Fav" CADTV channels (NBC, CBS, FOX, and ABC) without a problem, meaning I can see and cycle thru those 4 channels when I press the Fav button on the remote. But, for unknown reason, 1 of those 4 channels will drop off of the "Fav" list when I press the button again later (as short as 15 minutes). I added back the missing channel for a few times, but it always "shrink" back to a list of 3 channels, and it's not always the same channel that got dropped. Is there a 3 channels limit to the Fav list?

2. I noticed the scanned channel list has changed. Some channels that were valid have been dropped, meaning they are no longer accessible by pressing the channel up/down buttons. But, if I key in the actual channel, it'll display fine.


Anyone experienced either of these two problems? I'm moving in a week, so I won't be able to spend time testing it, but I thought someone may know the reason...

mfan,

I have also experienced the #@* Favorite channel list shrinking problem many times. In my case my favorite list is 7 channels. I find that the favorites dissappear when I use the favorites button alot. I believe that if I only change channels with CH UP, DOWN or punch in the numbers that the favorites designations stay programmed.

This bug is very annoying since I really want all the HD channels on the favorites list without any SD. If has become quite tedious to keep resetting dropped channels into the Favorites list.

Although I am not 100% sure, I also believe that the TV has changed the scan list on its own. However, this issue is no where near as big as the Favorites problem.

gby

I wonder if the earlier Zenith sets (the 42" EDTV) have and HDMI port? ClarkeBar---do you recall anyone on that thread commenting about such flashes??

I haven't noticed any flashes via HDMI on my Z42PX2D EDTV

I haven't noticed any flashes via HDMI on my Z42PX2D EDTV

Ah, excellent....a 42" owner with some input. Thanks for the response. Are you running a DVD player or a set top box via HDMI?

I am running the LG-511 via HDMI .. haven't notice any flashes. I have it set on 720p upconverting.
We have a pretty indepth thread on the HDMI input and DVD players (check out the Official Z42PX2D thread) .. there are a few PQ related topics, but it's more a comparison between Component and HDMI. If any flashing was taking place, we would have noticed it.
Clarkebar may chime in soon with some feedback.

Chili, I had a samsung upconverting dvd player/burner, the 325. Great player but same problem. An audio skip and it happened all the time. My connection was the same, hdmi to tv and optical to 5.1 receiver. I've read posts on the dvd player forums of others experiencing the same problem with the samsung dvr325. I tried 2 325's both had the audio issue, and I returned them. Now I'm waiting for a new player to come out.

Wow this thread has become a lot more active. I have had the TV since Nov. and I haven't had any flash problem. However I am not running DVD through HDMI though. I used the HDMI for comcast 3412 box (HDMI to HDMI). I didn't see any flashes with SD channels or HD channels, at 16:9 or 4:3 or zoom1.

I don't have the Batman disc, so I cannot comment on that, but I do see color banding from time to time. However that effect is so much better than I had experienced with the Maxent X3 I had earlier.

One thing I did notice. I don't know if it's a feature, but I haven't seen people mentioning it. After turning the TV on for 5 minutes or so, the picture contrast seems to increase and colors get more saturated and vibrant. It feels like a sudden switch, not a warming up process.

Joe you also can get it, we lucky folks here in MD were able to start Dec. 8th. I like the units HD-20's, I have three of them. Replaced my Sony's HD-300 and 200. I think the only channels using MPEG4 are the new locals.
They look just as good as my antenna did and am very happy overall.

The HD-DVR's with mpeg4 is not due out until early summer my installer told me.

Thanks for the info. I wonder how that slipped by me.

I am kind of at Directv's mercy anyway though because I have the HDTIVO.
It is a dual tuner PVR and needs both of the outputs of my dish so I could not get another receiver unless I put up another dish.

I have read that they will not offer a phsycial update to the HDTIVO to let it get Mpeg4 but will be coming out with a NON Tivo PVR but details on the swap are unknown.

One interesting note: NO FLASH on the component playback. So, in 3 of the 4 cases, it's definitely HDMI related.

TO all in this thread, Please check out the Poll I made in:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=632979

I can not figure out how to edit a poll and I see that I mispelled 2 words.


If my description in the first post in the poll is vague or incorrect, feel free to tell me what wording I should use and I will edit it.

If I understand the flashing issue, if it is something that would make using a DVD player on the HDMI input unwatchable/undesireable that should be brought to both the manufactuer's attention to FIX as well as a warning to potential buyers'.

Joe

I have not seen the Flashing Problem either via component. I just got an DVI - HDMI Cable from monoprice so I will test it with my Dish 811 HD and Zenith DVB318. Hopefully tonight.

Question about HD stuff. Does anyone have Dish 811 and the HD Pack? I added the Voom Channels and that gives more HD Content :D But I need more... ;)

Is there any more that I can get? I know the Zenith has an OTA HD Tuner. How do I go about getting the OTA stuff? Do I need an Antenna? If so, which one should I get. I think the Dish 811 has an OTA Tuner. So which do I use?

I am NYC so tell me more about the MPEG4 Stuff too.

Sorry about the noob HD Questions but I am addicted. :cool:

Thanks for the info. I wonder how that slipped by me.

I am kind of at Directv's mercy anyway though because I have the HDTIVO.
It is a dual tuner PVR and needs both of the outputs of my dish so I could not get another receiver unless I put up another dish.

I have read that they will not offer a phsycial update to the HDTIVO to let it get Mpeg4 but will be coming out with a NON Tivo PVR but details on the swap are unknown.
The new dish had outputs for up to 8 receivers at one time. So you could still have your Tivo and the new MPEG 4 receiver hooked up at the same time.

Question about HD stuff. Does anyone have Dish 811 and the HD Pack? I added the Voom Channels and that gives more HD Content :D But I need more... ;)

Is there any more that I can get? I know the Zenith has an OTA HD Tuner. How do I go about getting the OTA stuff? Do I need an Antenna? If so, which one should I get. I think the Dish 811 has an OTA Tuner. So which do I use?

I am NYC so tell me more about the MPEG4 Stuff too.
:cool:

I have a 6000 with the hdpack and voom, I think voom is disappointing in regards to movies, they switch the guytv channel out for the kungfu one and they play the same movies over and over and on different channels. The HD pack is ok, I watch some ESPNHD and DiscoveryHD, alot of TNTHD. The TNTHD channel is showing more actual HD material, mostly in prime time 5pm-11pm other stuff is SD streached.

For local OTAHD channels, you need an antenna. Some can get away with an in door antenna (i.e. silver sensor, rabbit ears), others need one in the attic and some of us that live in a valley need an outside antenna with a rotator. You will need to experiment.

I understand that all TV broadcast antennas are on one building in NYC, go to www.antennaweb.org and place in your address...it will show thier direction

As for the tuner, try both.... one may be better at picking up the channels than the other.

Currently only Directv is re-broadcasting the local HD channels....I think in NYC and LA at this time and they have a new MPEG4 receiver (H20?) also. Echostar is working on MPEG4 receiver but hasn't said what additional HD channels they are going to have...


Have fun.....

Joe,

Regarding your poll, I use Motorola 3412 DVR cable box, so that qualifies as #2 in the poll?

Hmmm... that makes 4 "flashers" here. I think we definitely have an issue, with SOMETHING. Mine is just like JellyBelly's-- so far, it's only on DVDs via HMDI.

I heard back from Zenith support-- basically just said if there's a problem with the set, have it serviced...blah, blah, blah.

What to do, what to do...?

I can confirm experiencing this problem as well over HDMI with Samsung HD845.

No "flash" issue here. I have the Samsung 850 connected via HDMI and my STB is connected via component. If indeed it has flashed it's nothing that has been noticable. I've watched plenty of HDTV and DVD movies and haven't noticed anything. I'm not much of a Videophile but I think I would have noticed "flashing"..

No "flash" issue here. I have the Samsung 850 connected via HDMI and my STB is connected via component. If indeed it has flashed it's nothing that has been noticable. I've watched plenty of HDTV and DVD movies and haven't noticed anything. I'm not much of a Videophile but I think I would have noticed "flashing"..

Well since I was the first of the flashers I figured I'd chime back in. I had it (on DVI--->HDMI), then changed STB's from a Samsung D* HD TS-360 to an HD TIVO (HDMI--->HDMI)....and it disappeared. Well, after watching both live as well as TIVO recordings tonight I'm here to say it's back! But it's not "viewable" on my recordings from the TIVO...IOW's if I see it at mark 32:35 and I go back 10 seconds to "see" if it's there again....it's not! But it will "show up" again randomly when I'm watching a recording (If that makes sense).

I've seen no flashing on the OTA tuner input and I have yet to switch back to component with the TIVO yet.

I thought it *may* be occurring because I have the ISM on "Orbiter", but changing it back to "Normal" still brought the flashing back.

Back to the drawing board.... :confused:

As stated earlier, I haven't experienced the "flash" problem since I got it almost 2 months ago. However, I have noticed 2 channel related problems this past week, so I want to check if others have the same/similar issues:

1. For some reason, the Fav channel list will "shrink" by itself. I can set up 4 "Fav" CADTV channels (NBC, CBS, FOX, and ABC) without a problem, meaning I can see and cycle thru those 4 channels when I press the Fav button on the remote. But, for unknown reason, 1 of those 4 channels will drop off of the "Fav" list when I press the button again later (as short as 15 minutes). I added back the missing channel for a few times, but it always "shrink" back to a list of 3 channels, and it's not always the same channel that got dropped. Is there a 3 channels limit to the Fav list?

2. I noticed the scanned channel list has changed. Some channels that were valid have been dropped, meaning they are no longer accessible by pressing the channel up/down buttons. But, if I key in the actual channel, it'll display fine.




Anyone except me and gby experienced either of these two problems?

Well, last night it got worse, by surfing the channels using both Fav button and entering channels directly, my 4 favorite channels went to 3, then to 2, then to 1. I still haven't figured out what caused them to drop off by itself... Anyone has a thought?

Anyone except me and gby experienced either of these two problems?

Well, last night it got worse, by surfing the channels using both Fav button and entering channels directly, my 4 favorite channels went to 3, then to 2, then to 1. I still haven't figured out what caused them to drop off by itself... Anyone has a thought?

I have the same experience using build-in tuner. I have experienced the following:
1. your described
2. I also used "last channel" button quite often. sometimes I can push it to go A ->B, but when I push it again, it cannot go B->A, it shows "no signal"
3. I labeled some of channels with available station icons, but after several days, some of the channel labels would disappear.

I suspect certain station could be listed as channel 123-12 in one day and 123-45 in the other and the favorite list and channel labels are tied with channel number. But I never write down each channel number for comparison purpose.

SO whats the best dvd or dvr for this set?? i think i might buy it this week. thanks

3. I labeled some of channel with available station icons, but after several days, some of the channel labels would disappear.


Anyone knows how to custom label stations which do not have available icons. It is a pain to surf the channel without it, because it takes a full second for the TV to be tuned in (I used digital cable tuner)

I am running the LG-511 via HDMI .. haven't notice any flashes. I have it set on 720p upconverting.
We have a pretty indepth thread on the HDMI input and DVD players (check out the Official Z42PX2D thread) .. there are a few PQ related topics, but it's more a comparison between Component and HDMI. If any flashing was taking place, we would have noticed it.
Clarkebar may chime in soon with some feedback.

I have the LG LDA-511 too and DVDs, xbox, and computer video output is great, no flashes at all, although sound is only coming through TV speakers.

Still need to figure out how to get surround sound through all channels (xbox, PC, DVD, and HDTV reciever (havent got this yet) through my slightly old Pioneer VSX-D510 5.1 Amp/Reciever which has digital audio connection.

Tried using digital audio toslink cable but no luck.

No "flash" issue here. .

Did you put your results rsults in the Flash poll?

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=632979

I don't see a lot of responses there.

Well since I was the first of the flashers I figured I'd chime back in. I had it (on DVI--->HDMI), then changed STB's from a Samsung D* HD TS-360 to an HD TIVO (HDMI--->HDMI)....and it disappeared. Well, after watching both live as well as TIVO recordings tonight I'm here to say it's back!

jaypb,
I am confused as well.
The poll is starting to look like a 50/50 split.

Reminds me of the HDMI issue on the HDTIVO. For quite some time after it was released it looked like about half had a bad HDMI port on the HDTIVO and the other half did not. I was one of the NOTS.

I have had my HDTIVO since it first came out 1 or 2 years ago and have had it connected via HDMI to the Zenith for exactly 2 months and 4 days.

I have never observed a single odd thing with that setup and the HDTIVO is my prime viewing source.
I don't even watch many DVD's because by waiting long enough, I can get those movies in HD on the HDTIVO.

My point is that there are a lot of viewing hours on the Zenith soley via HDMI HDTIVO with zero glitches (beyond some of the flukes of the TIVO)

jaypb,
I am confused as well.
The poll is starting to look like a 50/50 split.

Reminds me of the HDMI issue on the HDTIVO. For quite some time after it was released it looked like about half had a bad HDMI port on the HDTIVO and the other half did not. I was one of the NOTS.

I have had my HDTIVO since it first came out 1 or 2 years ago and have had it connected via HDMI to the Zenith for exactly 2 months and 4 days.

I have never observed a single odd thing with that setup and the HDTIVO is my prime viewing source.
I don't even watch many DVD's because by waiting long enough, I can get those movies in HD on the HDTIVO.

My point is that there are a lot of viewing hours on the Zenith soley via HDMI HDTIVO with zero glitches (beyond some of the flukes of the TIVO)

I haven't filled out the poll yet. Which one do I fall under (viewing via DVI--->HDMI as well as HDMI--->HDMI via 2 different D* Set top boxes)??

Got my DirecTV HDTivo (mostly) installed yesterday (Don't get me started on the ENTIRE DAY I spent waiting for this to happen. Worst television-related service I have ever recieved, bar NONE). Anyway.... I get NO flashes when running the HDTivo via the HMDI. I have only seen the flash with DVD players, in my case, a Samsung and a Sony.

Funny thing, though: I THINK I like the component picture better anyway. Seems more natural to me. Could be I just haven't looked at it enough. Anyway, looks like my situation is flashes on DVD + HMDI (which I selected in the poll-- btw, thanks for doing that, Joe!)

Got my DirecTV HDTivo (mostly) installed yesterday (Don't get me started on the ENTIRE DAY I spent waiting for this to happen. Worst television-related service I have ever recieved, bar NONE). Anyway.... I get NO flashes when running the HDTivo via the HMDI. I have only seen the flash with DVD players, in my case, a Samsung and a Sony.

Funny thing, though: I THINK I like the component picture better anyway. Seems more natural to me. Could be I just haven't looked at it enough. Anyway, looks like my situation is flashes on DVD + HMDI (which I selected in the poll-- btw, thanks for doing that, Joe!)

I thought I was free and clear with the HD TIVO installed as well (I hooked it up Sunday) after I took my DVI--->HDMI STB out of the mix...but watching a full 3 hours of HD programming live/recorded last night made me realize otherwise :confused:

Did you put your results rsults in the Flash poll?

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=632979

I don't see a lot of responses there.

I just did.

Just got my display this week, and it will soon be taking the place of a 43" Pio plasma. I'm not sure if it will work with the mount I'm using now, so I'm shopping around. I've been looking at this Peerless mount (http://www.mountsandmore.com/Peerless-SF660-PE0428.html). Any other suggestions? I'm not looking for anything fancy. Just something that keeps the display close to the wall.

Alright, i pulled the trigger this weekend, taking advantage of coupons and price matching from CC to BB. You won't beleive the deal i got. PM me if you would like to know. Quick question, which is the setting that needs to be turned down for the first 200 hours? I will have other details later on the evening as i am at work. I love this TV, Saving Private Ryan with DTS looks and sounds incredible. Sitting around 12 ' away...
Will be picking up LOR dvd's extended editions this afternoon, cant wait to see an hear. I will be also purchassing an HDMI cable to see if i get the flashing issue.

later

el fedz...

so what kind of dvd player you guys are runing?? i saw a LG dvd player dont know if its good or not.....any sugestion? im going to bestbuy in one hour to buy the TV.....

I think the Sony DVPNS70H looks real good on here...very little MB or banding... In nmay case, it looked a LOT better than the Samsung HD850. YMMV

thanks alot

Bought this tv this week from bb with rebate. Wont say the price but it is the same as the maxent x3 this week! Anyway Got it home and out the box picture was terrible. Contrast was set to 100 (highest level) and the black levels were a lighter shade of gray. seriously disapponted for the first 10 minutes of play. Anyway started adjusting levels by eye for the next five hours and now I have a picture displayIMO on the level of the panasonic 5050U. How, first off to all of you that own this plasma and are true videophiles, cut the contrast way down! (below 45) This tv has a high red push so you also have to take your color down to the low teens. Color banding on fog scenes is the biggest complant I have from this tv. ON Batman begins DVD; on scene 33 when gothom is filled with toxic gas, some of the smoke clouds exhibit red and green puffs of smoke. Is it so bad that I will return the tv, no; yet it is distracting to a non discriminate eye. I have read other members complaining of a flash when watching a brocast and yes I have experienced this in the first 6 hours of play out of the box. My theory is that the signal on my cable box loses the signal from the outside line for a half of second and the tv reacts as if the signal has been suddenly interupted which in essence it has. I only noticed this on one channel (analog) which I know form experience has a weak signal. Lastly Im a newbie to the forum but have been a videophile for the last five years. My last display was a JVC 56 CRT RPTV. Picture quality with that display was nothing short of excellent for the money spent. With the new Plasma I am getting more detail on my dvds that i wasn't seeing before but gave up the good black levels. All in all, for those thinking about getting this display and dont have an extra one or two thosand laying around two spurge on a top of the line display, this is a good buy.

Brian :cool:

Did you put your results rsults in the Flash poll?

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=632979

I don't see a lot of responses there.


Probably because not everyone connects with HDMI..yet. ;)

Bought this tv this week from bb with rebate. Wont say the price but it is the same as the maxent x3 this week! Anyway Got it home and out the box picture was terrible. Contrast was set to 100 (highest level) and the black levels were a lighter shade of gray. seriously disapponted for the first 10 minutes of play. Anyway started adjusting levels by eye for the next five hours and now I have a picture displayIMO on the level of the panasonic 5050U. How, first off to all of you that own this plasma and are true videophiles, cut the contrast way down! (below 45) This tv has a high red push so you also have to take your color down to the low teens.

Welcome! Glad we got another videophile onboard! Hopefully, general users like me can benefit from your insights! ;)

Please check out and contribute to the picture settings thread by Joe Q:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=604282


Picture quality with that display was nothing short of excellent for the money spent. With the new Plasma I am getting more detail on my dvds that i wasn't seeing before but gave up the good black levels. All in all, for those thinking about getting this display and dont have an extra one or two thosand laying around two spurge on a top of the line display, this is a good buy.

Exactly! I can think of a LOT of other things to buy with the money saved! :p

Hi everyone, my first post :)

I'm about to go and check this tv out tomorrow but I think I've done as much research as I could except physically seeing it in action. I just want to thank you all for a helpful review and sharing of experiences.

From what everyone is saying this tv should be worth it especially at such a discounted price. I will post my experiences with it once I get it. I'm 95% sure :).

Probably because not everyone connects with HDMI..yet. ;)

Just a plug for one of the forum sponsors, Monoprice, they have great prices on these cables. You could by 10 from them for the price of one at BB or CC and still have money to rent a few DVD's.
I bought one with my Zenith, bowing to the high pressure sales pitch from the CSR. Returned it when I saw the price at Monoprice. I was also able to order a nice 25 ft cable to connect to my laptop (which, by the way, looks great on this plasma.)
Unfortunately for me, I can only use the HDMI for my DVD player (LG LDA511)because my SA8300HD will not convert the analog audio to digital to pass over the HDMI (for Adelphia's CH2-99). I have not noticed any flashes BTW. I did complete the survey.
Finally, bought a cheapo (~$10 - can I say that) antenna from Radioshack for OTA. Primarily wanted Fox because Adelphia doesn't carry that in my market and I wanted to see 24. Anyway, that cheap antenna works great, at least here in WNY.
Thanks to those who have posted suggested settings in the settings thread for all of us to benefit.

I did a search of this thread and did not find anything. How is this for a computer display, not just a TV? I am close to buyying a Syntax Olevia 37" to use as a TV, and to use as a computer display (it'll be the secondary display, a 17" LCD is my primary display). My main uses will be surfing the net occasionally and possibly FPS gaming. Any ideas?

I did a search of this thread and did not find anything. How is this for a computer display, not just a TV? I am close to buyying a Syntax Olevia 37" to use as a TV, and to use as a computer display (it'll be the secondary display, a 17" LCD is my primary display). My main uses will be surfing the net occasionally and possibly FPS gaming. Any ideas?

I believe Joe Q has it setup for computer. But, I would hesitate using a plasma for computer display. I think once in a while for a short duration is ok, but if you plan to use it quite frequently and for longer durations, you run the risk of burn-ins.

This Zenith is relatively new and is equiped with the common burn-in prevention methods, however, it's not immune to burn-ins.

speaking of burn-ins.. and i'm not too knowledgable about tvs or plasmas but does this zenith have the same technology that the maxent has with the slight rotations of the pixels (or mirrors or whatever is used) to prevent the burn ins?

if so, can it still occur and under what situations?

[QUOTE]
elspankdog
HD Junkie

Just got my display this week, and it will soon be taking the place of a 43" Pio plasma. I'm not sure if it will work with the mount I'm using now, so I'm shopping around. I've been looking at this Peerless mount. Any other suggestions? I'm not looking for anything fancy. Just something that keeps the display close to the wall.

Check out Wallyword (WM) Same kind of mount for around that same price, should be able to just pick up locally, check there web site.

speaking of burn-ins.. and i'm not too knowledgable about tvs or plasmas but does this zenith have the same technology that the maxent has with the slight rotations of the pixels (or mirrors or whatever is used) to prevent the burn ins?

if so, can it still occur and under what situations?I don't have this particular model but my 42" Zenith has "whitewash" and "inverter" which are both manual tools to erase any temporary burn-in and also an "orbiter" setting which can be left on all the time to shift pixels. In over a year I haven't had any permanent burn-in issues even with a Xbox mishap a few months ago. (static screen left on overnight...wiped out with a 2 minute whitewash the next morning)

I did a search of this thread and did not find anything. How is this for a computer display, not just a TV? I am close to buyying a Syntax Olevia 37" to use as a TV, and to use as a computer display (it'll be the secondary display, a 17" LCD is my primary display). My main uses will be surfing the net occasionally and possibly FPS gaming. Any ideas?Personally I wouldn't use a plasma as a primary pc monitor...but it shouldn't be a problem as long as you "dock" the browser bar and windows toolbar and use an animated screensaver and/or turn it off or switch to tv when not using it.

I don't have this particular model but my 42" Zenith has "whitewash" and "inverter" which are both manual tools to erase any temporary burn-in and also an "orbiter" setting which can be left on all the time to shift pixels. In over a year I haven't had any permanent burn-in issues even with a Xbox mishap a few months ago. (static screen left on overnight...wiped out with a 2 minute whitewash the next morning)


Joemama127, where do I get these tools from? Can you point me in the right direction. I'm still not sure if I'll need it but its good to know. Thanks for the reply.

joeq or someone else could post what is it that needs to be turned down for the first 200 hours or so? also, does someone have a quick dummy version of what and how to use the maintenance tools etc.. i.e. whitwash, inverter and orbiter is applies.

el fedz

So do you buy a warranty with this television or just cross your fingers that it goes before the factory warranty goes? Just sold my 42 Samsung and going after this one Saturday.

When you guys play widescreen DVDs with upconverted 1080 or 720p DVD players, do you still have the black bars on top and bottoms?(or black bars becomes smaller) I know it's a silly question. :) Thanks for your reply.

joeq or someone else could post what is it that needs to be turned down for the first 200 hours or so? also, does someone have a quick dummy version of what and how to use the maintenance tools etc.. i.e. whitwash, inverter and orbiter is applies.

el fedz

The manual details the whitewash/inverter/orbiter usage. Hit Menu and go down to options. Then go across to ISM Method. I believe the 4th choice is "NORMAL".

AFA which setting to turn down for the first 200 hours....out of the box it's contrast and brightness. Beyond that it's up to your eyes. There's also a "llow power" setting in the menu somewhere as well. You can either apply that....or take it off. I have mine set to OFF....if only because the TV is in a room with a lot of sunlight/brightness....and having this setting "ON" leads to a picture that is TOO dark.

To each his own.....<G>

thanks jaypb

i will make the bright and contrast adjustments today and track hours of use. your room sounds identical to mine, bright for the most part. BTW, i really have not finished reading the manual, but is there a recommended time or incident that the tools should be used

el fedz

thanks jaypb

i will make the bright and contrast adjustments today and track hours of use. your room sounds identical to mine, bright for the most part. BTW, i really have not finished reading the manual, but is there a recommended time or incident that the tools should be used

el fedz

I'd say to use the whitewashing after heavy menu usage (i.e you leave the menu up to adjust your settings or as you are setting up your channel logo affiliations or when you are doing a channel scan) or if you are watching a sporting even with a scoreboard logo in it for hours and hours....or if you have CNN on for a long time...or are playing video games or something along those lines. Basically, for an idiot like me it would be if I kept a static image up on the screen for a long time and walked away (i.e an HD show on CBS ended at 11pm, I fell asleep and the news came on in 4:3 mode with black bars on it for 4 hours).

Something like that. If you go to the whitewash screen check it out to *see* if you notice anything "left" on the screen (i.e a CBS logo in the corner, a scoreboard box in the upper LH corner, a Menu imprint right in the middle of the screen).

I have yet to see anything that listed for 3-4 seconds after I changed a channel....but like I said, you never know.

In my case, I leave it set on ORBITER at all times and use the whitewash once or twice a week for 1-2 minutes at a time....if that long of a duration.

Eases my mind and soul to know I have that little nifty feature there... ;)

What is the best video setting for PC display at 1024 x 768 x 75hz???
It seems kinda interlacy and colors are bright as heck. I tried adjusting but didnt have much luck.

BTW I tried 1280 x 768 but it looked crappy.

My video card is a 256mb GeForce GO 7800 GTX card. :D

Joemama127, where do I get these tools from? Can you point me in the right direction. I'm still not sure if I'll need it but its good to know. Thanks for the reply.


They are built into the TV. You can access them via the Menu.

You will be very happy with this TV. My Brother in Law saw mine and we went out to get one. I told My cus about and she is going to buy one also. Great Deal for a 50" Plasma. :)

:confused: Purchased a Z50PX2D a couple of weeks ago. I have 3 issues. Some of these have been touched before, but I haven't really seen any responses to them.

1. - programmed catv channels "disappearing". You can flip through them and all the channels are there, and then next time, a few of them are no longer programmed in.

2. - Channel labels seem to get removed from random channels for no apparent reason.

3. - The "info" button always displays "no program information available" while watching television. I have another (older) zenith TV and it displays the name of the program, rating, time remaining and total time of the program. I have plugged them both into the same cable outlet. The older TV displays the program information, the new Z50PX2D does not, ever.


I emailed customer service and their response was "We regret that you are experiencing a problem with your Zenith product. For further assistance, you will need to contact a service center near you. "

Any help would be appreciated. I am about to the point of taking it back to best buy and exchanging it.

Wondering what kind of mount everyone is using with this set. Just made the purchase and need to buy a mount.

bobsyouruncle,

The manual says that the only info that will get displayed is from the OTA channels. It doesn't have an EPG for regular cable.

jkeener71,

Please make the effort to read through the posts here on PC settings before asking questions. The sweet spot for PC settings have not been discovered yet. Also the manual shows what resolution "should be used. Also , reading the manual would keep some questions from being asked and keepping this thread down to a "readable" level. Not getting on anyones case, but I am starting to see some "I'm too lazy so please just tell me" posts here. Makes for a long thread read when non published info is needed.

Hope not to offend anyone.

What is the best video setting for PC display at 1024 x 768 x 75hz???
It seems kinda interlacy and colors are bright as heck. I tried adjusting but didnt have much luck.

BTW I tried 1280 x 768 but it looked crappy.

My video card is a 256mb GeForce GO 7800 GTX card. :D

I use a Radeon 9600 set to 1280x720 and running throught the HDMI port. Looks great.

I started a thread dedicated to service menu tweaking and I have a number of posts about the PC side of things in there.

See:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6964427#post6964427

Wondering what kind of mount everyone is using with this set. Just made the purchase and need to buy a mount.


I am using the Omnimount U3TILTMOUNT.

The bottom of the TV set is 39" from the floor and I expected to have to give it a slight downward tilt at that height so that is why I bought this mount.

I was right - I have it tilted down just a few degrees.

A Tilt mount (at last mine did) does add a bit to the distance of the TV to the wall compared to using a fixed mount but I needed that extra inch.

Bottom backside of the TV is 3 3/4" from the wall. Top is farther.
Not sure that is a big deal though because I recall that the manual wanted a clearance of 3" for the cooling fan.

You do have to be careful on wall distance with this TV. The cable I use for the MYHD to TV component connection has BNC ends with screw on RCA adaptors so it is kind of long.
Those are touching the wall with my tilt mount. Not sure if I would have punched out that wall area if I used a Fixed mount.

Even the other connections are REALLY close to the wall.

HDMI is on the botom backside and due to the shape of the TV(I think that was the reason,can't see behind it very well now) it has plenty of clearance.

My HDMI cable is THE longest connector on the TV due to it's large bend radius.

Zenith did a good job in the Mechanical Engineering department with this TV.

Final ramble:)
A heads up.
The Ominmount (and I suspect most others) comes set up to use 2 screws on each mounting plate BUT the TV has 3 mounting holes on each side.

These are NOT large screws either and I was worried about stress (as well as quality ) on just 4 little screws holding this TV onto the wall backet so I replaced the 4 and used 2 extra top quality screws.

NOT home depot either.
You know, the little HW store that everyone knows about that seems to have everything and is the only place to find true stainless or hardened bolts with 3 or 4 notches and that has their nuts/bolts in the 'special' box hidden behind the counter.

When you guys play widescreen DVDs with upconverted 1080 or 720p DVD players, do you still have the black bars on top and bottoms?(or black bars becomes smaller) I know it's a silly question. :) Thanks for your reply.

Well you did say it:)

You are almost always going to get black bars on the top and bottom when watching widescreen material (pan and scan is not germain to this discussion) because the ratio of most movies is not the exact ratio of the our 16x9 TV sets.

I forget the exact number now but say for example that our HDTV's are 1:66 ratio.
Unless the movie is shot at that ratio, you will get black bars on the top and bottom.

That is why the black bars are wider or smaller on different movie. sources because they are shot at different aspect ratios.

Some folks,like me, use an HTPC and a SW DVD player called Theatertek. That one has every bell and whistle you can imagine and one is Custom Aspect Ratios.
You could with TT, have it adjust the AR of the source material's display if you so desired.

I think some other HW DVD players have zoom modes to fill the screen but in either case, you are going to make the picture look a bit stretched.

So, unless you are worried about screen burn in,which on todays sets is a greatly exagerated worry, enjoy the movie in it's proper AR.

Joe

So I watched Batman begins this morning thru my Denon 2900 which does not up-convert.
This player and my TV had NO problems whatsoever with chapter 33 or any other part of this this.
It was the first movie I have watched the whole way thru since buying this set and I was very impressed.
I know my Denon was a little pricey at the time I bought it, but this is one of the reasons doing so.
I have still yet to find a downfall for this set.

Anyone have an opinion on this set or is it to new?
I was all set to get the commercial Panasonic 50" when a previous TV I had took a dump and now I have a fair amount of store credit at one of the super stores. They sell the 50" consumer Panny and this Zenith which is actually a few dollars less than the Panny. Now I guess I need to rethink what TV I am getting as the commercial model is out of the question.
I think the Zenith Z50PX2D is a very good buy for the money. CC is selling it for $$$ and you get a $400 rebate from Zenith bringing the price down to $$$. I checked the TV and compared it to its twin LG and a Panasonic TH50PX50 and Samsung HP-R5052. The Panasonic and Samsung were marginally better in clarity,contrast and tone but the Zenith was better than the LG overall. However the price difference of $1000-1300 more(after rebate) for the other models is definitely not justified and I would buy the Zenith without any hesitation. If anyone is concerned about the quality you can get a 4 year extended warranty and still be better off than the other models.BTW the panasonic is not currently available and Samsung has more problems than the Zenith. Nobody wants to pay a thousand dollars more and buy the LG. So go for the Zenith, you cant go wrong!

EDIT>>

mod note: no price other than MSRP, please. Thanks

I thought seriously about this Zenith but Best Buy bites. And I thought the Philips they had right above it looked a little better. I am going to check out the Philips that Costco is running starting Monday. They didn't have any in stock yet when I checked out the Vizio. The Viz looked really good but I don't like the possibility of needing to get the fan replaced right out of the box. One interesting thing about my conversation with the BB guy; he said the Maxent gets returned a lot because it doesn't have the proper aspect ratios to view SD programming and fill the screen effectively. Might be hogwash but that's what he said.

I think the Zenith Z50PX2D is a very good buy for the money. CC is selling it for $$$ and you get a $400 rebate from Zenith bringing the price down to $$$. I checked the TV and compared it to its twin LG and a Panasonic TH50PX50 and Samsung HP-R5052. The Panasonic and Samsung were marginally better in clarity,contrast and tone but the Zenith was better than the LG overall. However the price difference of $1000-1300 more(after rebate) for the other models is definitely not justified and I would buy the Zenith without any hesitation. If anyone is concerned about the quality you can get a 4 year extended warranty and still be better off than the other models.BTW the panasonic is not currently available and Samsung has more problems than the Zenith. Nobody wants to pay a thousand dollars more and buy the LG. So go for the Zenith, you cant go wrong!

EDIT>>

mod note: no price other than MSRP, please. Thanks
If you didn't already know....when you buy Zenith you are buying LG. LG bought Zenith a while back...the differences you saw were most likely due to one having the settings at a more optimal level. I do agree with saving money and getting the Zenith branded model however..

Flash update: I previously only noticed flash on DVD player. Now have significant flashing with DirecTivo HD1-250. This is confined to HDMI. Looks like I'm gonna have to call Circuit City. :(

Flash update: I previously only noticed flash on DVD player. Now have significant flashing with DirecTivo HD1-250. This is confined to HDMI. Looks like I'm gonna have to call Circuit City. :(


Oddly, I haven't seen ANY flashes in days on my HDMI source (HD TIVO).

Go figure....
:confused:

I am confused as well...took a few days for it to begin (or at least for me to notice-- my wife notices it as well, which is NOT good!). CC services the Zenith's they sell, so I guess it's a call to them.

Wait a minute! I THINK there's something even more weird going on. I just realized, this was the first RECORDED show I watched since getting hooked up. It doesn't seem to flash during normal viewing, but only on playback of recorded material! Does that sound crazy or WHAT? I'll look more tomorrow, but I think that's the key... maybe it's some sort of protectoin scheme gone haywire?

Expeiriencing flashing on CATV source sometimes. Not on DTV, or CADTV. Sometimes also on component, however extremely rare and only on 480i source (a very bad one I might add).

Has anyone got the flashing on CATV? It happens with no rhyme or reason. - does rarely, but can get on a roll until I switch channels. Waiting to see if it gets worse as time passes. Will one day get off my butt and point a video camera at it and let it roll on the off chance it will catch it if it does and post a frame grab.

I have expeirienced some channels randomly adding/deleting themselves if I even visit the Channel Edit menu, and channels adding themselves on DTV with no warning (only subchannels so far, who knows what the broadcaster in my area are doing though.) - nothing serious though and does this rarely.

I had purchased the Samsung HD850 DVD player like the guy that posted earlier. Ran into exactly what he ran into. Major lip-sync (Dvd player's fault) on the optical (less on the coaxial) - both inconsistant (as in could not be compensated for as the delay fluctuated-stop the disc, hit play again and the delay was fixed, for a bit). Audio though HDMI in DD (DTS didn't work) had dropouts. I hope those dropouts were the fault of the player (I don't have and will not buy another HDMI source for a while.)
Also, the HD850 looked like crap on this set, no shadow detail at all. Watched Serenity with it, had to turn everything up, and still. Hooked up my old Sony 480p component DVD player, and picture looked fine. Contimplating the Denon 1920, however saw some negative comments earlier about Denons and this set. (Also something about macroblocking enhancement bug due to Farajouda - don't know if this set it affected) Anyone settled on the best DVD player for this set for under $300 or close to that? I don't want to spend a lot since we got Blu-ray and HD-DVD later this year.

Firmware updates?

Just thinking out loud here people.

Here is what I posted in the Poll thread:



I too was getting these flashes (I am at work now so can't post the build date).

I would get these flashes while watching DVD over HDMI using the Oppo. I sent the Oppo back due to macroblocking and lip synch. During this time it would also flash while watching DirecTivo over S-Video. It never once flashed while using the builtin HDTV tuner, though.

Anyway, I bought a Toshiba DVD player and it still flashed. A few days later, I gave my wireless network router to my mother to use and the flashing stopped and has not returned. I have no idea if the 802.11 wireless was somehow causing interference with the TV or if other people with flashes are also running wireless networks at home. The router was an older Linksys and I am now running a D-Link and not getting the flashes. At some point I plan on getting the Linksys back in the house to see if the TV flashes again.

Here is what I posted in the Poll thread:



I too was getting these flashes (I am at work now so can't post the build date).

I would get these flashes while watching DVD over HDMI using the Oppo. I sent the Oppo back due to macroblocking and lip synch. During this time it would also flash while watching DirecTivo over S-Video. It never once flashed while using the builtin HDTV tuner, though.

Anyway, I bought a Toshiba DVD player and it still flashed. A few days later, I gave my wireless network router to my mother to use and the flashing stopped and has not returned. I have no idea if the 802.11 wireless was somehow causing interference with the TV or if other people with flashes are also running wireless networks at home. The router was an older Linksys and I am now running a D-Link and not getting the flashes. At some point I plan on getting the Linksys back in the house to see if the TV flashes again.

Interesting connection, with the wireless router. I currently have a {insert name here} router/modem combo from Verizon. Previously (pre 1/1/06) I had a Linksys WRT-54G (??) router before 1/1/06...and saw the flashes...but I also see them now with the {non-descript} Verizon stock modem/router combo. The router is in another room I might add...2 rooms away for that matter.

Anyone else with this *issue* have a wireless router ?

I am using the Omnimount U3TILTMOUNT.

These are NOT large screws either and I was worried about stress (as well as quality ) on just 4 little screws holding this TV onto the wall backet so I replaced the 4 and used 2 extra top quality screws.



What size bolts did you use for the install with the OmniMount?

I just received my zenith tv and absolutely love it.. I had high expectations for the screen quality and was surprised that the picture quality had surpassed it! I've been watching tons of Discovery HD..

However I have 2 minor issues with the tv.. the first one I've seen several posts about, but the second one I haven't seen any mention of..

1. the favorites channel keeps losing channels at random, and the scanned channel list seems to be dropping channels as well..

2. the input switcher button does not seem to work correctly.. I have a direct CATV cable connection, a Component 1 connection, and a front source connection.. but when I press input, it will only rotate between CATV and CADTV.. the manual says that the input will only switch to the input if it is connected, but it is not working correctly.. the devices I connected to those inputs were fully powered up and transmitting..


Can someone respond wether or not the input switcher button is working for them? Is there some other reason why input switching would not be working? I can still switch inputs by going into the menu and manually switching video sources, but would like to figure out what the problem with this is..

I just received my zenith tv and absolutely love it.. I had high expectations for the screen quality and was surprised that the picture quality had surpassed it! I've been watching tons of Discovery HD..

However I have 2 minor issues with the tv.. the first one I've seen several posts about, but the second one I haven't seen any mention of..

1. the favorites channel keeps losing channels at random, and the scanned channel list seems to be dropping channels as well..

2. the input switcher button does not seem to work correctly.. I have a direct CATV cable connection, a Component 1 connection, and a front source connection.. but when I press input, it will only rotate between CATV and CADTV.. the manual says that the input will only switch to the input if it is connected, but it is not working correctly.. the devices I connected to those inputs were fully powered up and transmitting..

Can someone respond wether or not the input switcher button is working for them? Is there some other reason why input switching would not be working? I can still switch inputs by going into the menu and manually switching video sources, but would like to figure out what the problem with this is..

I'm wit chew as far as the input button rotation/switching. I complained/commented about this a few pages earlier. IIRC, the manual states something to the effect that you can "skip" the input if nothing is connected...and my HOPE was that there would be a "skip" entry where you label your inputs (The Sony LCD RPTV's do this) and you wouldn't have to worry about "switching" inputs that weren't in use/connected. No dice I guess.

I haven't set up my "favorites" yet on the internal tuner. I just hit "2" and when 2-1 pops up I'll scroll to that off of the top RH corner of the screen.

I have a wireless router right beside the set!.. I'll be turning it of and testing to see if that is the culprit. VERY interesting....

FWIW, as for DVD players with this set, I tried 4 (a Sony DVPNS70H, the upconverting Samsung mentioned earlier, a prog. scan Pioneer and a prog. scan Panasonic (older model). The hands down best PQ out of all the ones I connected was the Sony DVPNS70H--either through HDMI or component. Far less banding and noise. Very crisp image.

My set was flashing like crazy last night, so of course, now I don't see it flashing at all--with or without router plugged in! :confused:

I have a wireless router right beside the set!.. I'll be turning it of and testing to see if that is the culprit. VERY interesting....

I have previously reported an issue with flashing while watching DVD's via HDMI. I too have a wireless router running approx 30 ft away from the TV.

All the DVDs I watch are rented through NetFlix and I only seemed to notice the flashing on the NetFlix DVDs that were the generic grey labels and not on original label DVDs.

The only other input I have connected is the OTA tuner and I have never seen a flash there.

eddiwill, do you know if the sony dvpns70h will upconvert through the component cale or just hdmi? Also has anyone tried the lg lda-511 dvd player?

Wait a minute! I THINK there's something even more weird going on. I just realized, this was the first RECORDED show I watched since getting hooked up. It doesn't seem to flash during normal viewing, but only on playback of recorded material! Does that sound crazy or WHAT? I'll look more tomorrow, but I think that's the key... maybe it's some sort of protectoin scheme gone haywire?


Barking up a wrong tree I am afraid:)

The ONLY thing I watch live on my HDTIVO is sports and we know that I am NOT a member of the 'flasher' club.

I timeshift everything else and usually watch about 1.5 hours a night before bed of PRERECORDED material.
Had the TV for over 2 months as well.

Now, if you had said it was flashing on LIVE only then that would have caught my attention

pajer-- no, it only upconverts on HDMI, but I gotta tell you, I saw NO difference. Not saying it wasn't different, I just felt it looked about the same either way.

What size bolts did you use for the install with the OmniMount?

I am sorry but I do not recall. It was a rather fine thread bolt and I think like 5 mm.
I do remember that it was metric.

I planned the install out on a Friday evening and went out and got everything I needed so I could spend all day Saturday if I wanted and not rush this job.

I took the ones in the Omnimount bag (they have screws for a LOT of diferent TV thread sizes) to that HW store I mentioned.

Also, the lag bolts that are used to bolt the plate into the stub are BIG so be very careful to make sure you have found the exact center of the stud or you can slpit the 2x4 .

Personally, I think Omnimount went over board on the size of the lag bolt.
4 lag bolts as big around as your finger for the bracket BUT only 4 dinky metal screws bolted to the TV set made NO sense to me.
The had not choice of course with the diameter of the TV screws and it was an exact fit.
I feel much better knowing that there are now 6 high quality metal screws holding the TV on.

Also, make sure you drill a full length pilot hole first.
I did not go all the way in with a pliot hole on the first of the 4 monster bolts and I could hear the wood cracking behind the wall as I got near the end of tightening it. It takes a socket wrench to screw them in but don't overtighten or you may hear that dreaded 'keerak' sound.

Take your time, take my advice about the stud center,etc. and it is a piece of cake.
Believe it or not, the LONGEST (by far) part of the job was finding the exact stud center.

I used a sonic stud finder and it is supposed to let you find the edge of ech side of the 2x4 but I could never get a consistent reading.

What I ended up doing was that I took a little nail and hammered it around where the stud find indicated the edge oif each side was.

With this install, I am ready to simply hang my next one - a 65" 1080P Plasma :)

I have a wireless router right beside the set!.. I'll be turning it of and testing to see if that is the culprit. VERY interesting....

I am sitting 5 feet from the TV typing away on my wireless laptop and the AP is in on of the back rooms about 40' away.
My HYTPC is also wireless and is a few feet away form the TV.

Remember, I did post quite some time back that my TV drives my AM radio nuts with static when it is on. Totally unlisteneable (it's AM Talk radio).

NO one else could replicate the problem.

Just another data point.

Thanks Joe Q. I plan to hang my Z50 this weekend. I've been following this thread and I've gotten many great ideas. Thanks to all of you.

1. the favorites channel keeps losing channels at random, and the scanned channel list seems to be dropping channels as well..

2. the input switcher button does not seem to work correctly.. I have a direct CATV cable connection, a Component 1 connection, and a front source connection.. but when I press input, it will only rotate between CATV and CADTV.. the manual says that the input will only switch to the input if it is connected, but it is not working correctly.. the devices I connected to those inputs were fully powered up and transmitting..


I have the same experience as 1.
For 2. there are two input button on the remote, the one on the top right will cycle through CATV, CADTV, component 1...., the one on the top left only cycle TV tuner sources (CATV and CADTV).
Actually the top left input button provides a shortcut from component 1 to CADTV.

I have the same experience as 1.
For 2. there are two input button on the remote, the one on the top right will cycle through CATV, CADTV, component 1...., the one on the top left only cycle TV tuner sources (CATV and CADTV).
Actually the top left input button provides a shortcut from component 1 to CADTV.

hah.. didn't notice that button.. thanks..

Just plugged in my philips dvp-642 into my zenith and dvd's look awesome.. just had to activate progressive mode and component out in the system menu.. not bad for a $50 player that plays divx too.. I don't think I will be buying an upscaler dvd player...

Have any of you done a PQ comparison yet between MYHD and a standalone upconverting DVD player on this set?

MYHD upconverts DVD's and the PQ improvement over a standalone is quite dramatic.

I don't use my standalone prog scan DVD player for watching DVD's cause it's no contest. The player is soley used for SACD and DVD-A.


I am really curious if I could get an even better picture on the Zenith if I were to use a standalone upconverting DVD player particulary since they are getting so inxpensive and MYHD does have it's useability quirks at times.

Thanks

Have any of you done a PQ comparison yet between MYHD and a standalone upconverting DVD player on this set?

MYHD upconverts DVD's and the PQ improvement over a standalone is quite dramatic.

I don't use my standalone prog scan DVD player for watching DVD's cause it's no contest. The player is soley used for SACD and DVD-A.


I am really curious if I could get an even better picture on the Zenith if I were to use a standalone upconverting DVD player particulary since they are getting so inxpensive and MYHD does have it's useability quirks at times.

Thanks

I don't have a MYHD setup, but I will say that I went out and bought an upconverting Zenith DVD player (DVB318) from BB that arrived last night for $xxx.xx (fill in the blanks). This is one of the few DVD players that (via firmware downloads) can be "rolled back" to allow 1080i upconversion over the component cabling (as opposed to only over DVI/HDMI---thanks Hollywood!!!).

I didn't get to watch a WHOLE movie last night, but I did pop "ELF" in and I will say that the picture looked much more detailed than my previous RCA progressive scan DVD player. Hopefully I'll get some time to tweak the settings on the component input via DVE or AVIA. But that damn "time" thing keeps getting in the way.... <G>

And, you'd THINK that the remote that came with the DVB318 would automatically be programmed to control a Zenith TV....but of course, that's not the case! I had to manually enter the Zenith 3 digit codes to control volume/mute on the DVD player remote. Didn't get around to seeing if the TV remote was already "pre-set" to control the DVD player.....

Just got my Zenith this week and I noticed that there was a monitor output A/V jack on the back for a second TV or Monitor.

I don't have another TV with an A/V input jack to test this Zenith feature so I was wondering if anyone knows:

1) If the Zenith had to be turn-on for the second TV to receive a signal?
2) Is the signal catv, cadtv or HD?

Thanks

Has anyone tested if the zenith handles 1080i signals correctly? I'm talking about that article claiming that most HDTV's discard half the signal when downscaling to native.. I remember seeing that most of the LG's failed..

Has anyone tested if the zenith handles 1080i signals correctly? I'm talking about that article claiming that most HDTV's discard half the signal when downscaling to native.. I remember seeing that most of the LG's failed..

How does one test such a thing?

I can see that NON 1080i TV's WILL discard part of the signal anyway so I am kind of lost on the point.

The Zenith Plasma (like all available to mere mortals today) are panels of 1280x720 pixels but 1080i is 1920x1080 pixels displayed in every other pass (The Interlacing) so some data has to get tossed on a 720P display.

So, how come ALL did not fail?

How does one test such a thing?

I can see that NON 1080i TV's WILL discard part of the signal anyway so I am kind of lost on the point.

The Zenith Plasma (like all available to mere mortals today) are panels of 1280x720 pixels but 1080i is 1920x1080 pixels displayed in every other pass (The Interlacing) so some data has to get tossed on a 720P display.

So, how come ALL did not fail?

I don't recall the exact technical details, but it involved hooking up a PC generating a 1080i test image, and checking the resultant downscaled image for jitter on certain parts of the image to see if it was properly downscaling..

I don't recall the exact technical details, but it involved hooking up a PC generating a 1080i test image, and checking the resultant downscaled image for jitter on certain parts of the image to see if it was properly downscaling..

I tracked that thread for a while before and after I bought my Zenith, but it got way too technical for me. :rolleyes:

I figured if the PQ looks good to me, what do I care how the image was scaled and/or converted. I'll like upgrade to true 1080p in a few years anyway. :p

I am sorry but I do not recall. It was a rather fine thread bolt and I think like 5 mm.
I do remember that it was metric.


I used Omnimount too.

Actually, the SIX screws you get when take off the TV stand are perfect for attach omnimount to the back of TV. The drawback of using three screws each side is you will loose the freedom to fine adjust the TV height. My panel is mounted probably two inches higher than I originally planned.

I also put two stripes (2"x20") of shock absorbent pad, usually used for kitchen glassware, between the omnimount and the back of TV to increase friction, otherwise the direct metal-metal contact worries me.

Wow playin PC games in 1024 x 768 is pretty sweet!

I know this is the max resolution, but will I be happy with this over the next few years?

I guess what I am asking will I have any regrets?

"Regrets... You'll have a few, then again, too few to mention..."

Sorry, couldn't resist! :)

Seriously, my motto is always try to get the most you can afford so you'll be happy longer. There's always something better, now and just around the corner. For me, even the price tag for this TV was a bit steep (more than steep, according to the wife), but it was the absolute best I could afford, so I went for it. I do regret I couldn't get a bigger screen with maybe a Pioneer logo on it, but I don't regret this purchase in and of itself, because I know I got the most bang for the buck I could possible get NOW.

Enjoy the Zenith; it's not only a great set, but a true bargain!

BTW, has this happened to anyone else: ever since I connected my HD10-250, I can no longer select the "Horizon" ratio. Not only when viewing from the HD 10-250, but even when I switch to OTA! It cycles throughthe ratios without showing it and when I pull the ratios up via menu, it's greyed out!

Am I missing something, or does that connector kill that ratio?

If I remember correctly, you cannot use Horizon for 16:9 content with Zeniths. If the OTA content you mentioned is HD then that explains it. If you are outputting 16:9 from your box---same deal. You also cannot use Horizon with any Digital input as a rule, except through CableCard, which I use with my Zenith ED along with an HD DVR. For whatever reason Cablecard allows use of all aspect ratio controls.

Go figure.

Wow playin PC games in 1024 x 768 is pretty sweet!

I know this is the max resolution, but will I be happy with this over the next few years?

I guess what I am asking will I have any regrets?

It is not max resolution.
The spec sheet says the TV is 1366x768 but I sure have had not luck getting a PC connection to sync at that resolution

However,


I have posted several times that I am running (with a bit of overscan) at 1280x720 on the component (using Radeon YPB adaptor) input or the HDMI input.

Now, I have my HTPC permanently set to 1280x720 and I use the HDMI input.
Tha YPB adaptor is back in the part box.

I don't think the 720P resolution is going to make any visual difference over 1024x768 unless you are using an XBOX 360 or next year, the PS3.
Those are 720P,1080P respectively



A question for you - Are any of the games you are playing 16x9?
The question is because 1024x768 is NOT a proper 16x9 resolution so the game would have a slightly distorted aspect ratio.

I would need to do the math and I don't feel like it it but you woould get either a slightly squashed look or fat people:)

720P is something to consider using.

I used Omnimount too.

A) Actually, the SIX screws you get when take off the TV stand are perfect for attach omnimount to the back of TV.

B) I also put two stripes (2"x20") of shock absorbent pad, usually used for kitchen glassware, between the omnimount and the back of TV to increase friction, otherwise the direct metal-metal contact worries me.

A) Good point.
In my case, I lose stuff so I screwed them back into the stand.
Plus I had to go to my local non-chain HW store for a stud finder so I figured I would also get better quality screws.

$.30 per screw is not going to bankrupt me:)

I like the idea of knowing that hardened bolts are holding all that weight.
BTW, the owner said NOT to use stainless becauase they are brittle which was a lesson for me

B) You got me curious on this one. What is wrong with metal-metal contact?
The mount is not connected to any ground plane since it is bolted to wood.

A question for you - Are any of the games you are playing 16x9?
The question is because 1024x768 is NOT a proper 16x9 resolution so the game would have a slightly distorted aspect ratio.

I would need to do the math and I don't feel like it it but you woould get either a slightly squashed look or fat people:)

720P is something to consider using.

Call of Duty 2 does 16:9 and 16:10 in the options. It looks great!

As far as the resolution, best I can get is 1024x768x75hz, the manual is says that is max for PC display, if you can ever get 1366 x 768, let me know how you do it. Thanks.

I am looking at adding a upconversion dvd player to my zenith tv. right now i am using my dish network hd vip211 hdmi output to the hdmi on the zenith. I am looking at the following dvd players, would like to get one that upconverts through both the component cables and hdmi to the zenith.
sony dvpns70h
lg lda-511
oppo dv971h
zenith dvb318
samsung dvd-hd850

would like one that plays the most formats has great quality through hdmi or/and component, i know the zenith and the oppo have dvi out instead of hdmi, should that be much of a concern for me, i know they make dvi to hdmi cables, but is it nice to have audio ans d video all on one cable. do they make a switch that would alow me to input the two hdmi's into the tv. anyone out there want to rank these players or have any real life eperience with any of the players. Thanks for your help Pajer

Can someone post a description of what the "flash" looks like? Does it cover the whole screen or does it look like a quick flash of corrupt blocks of pixels of various colors that covers very little of the screen?

I'm asking because while watching one of the football games a couple of weeks back using the cheap component cables that the cable company provided, I noticed what appeared to be corrupt data flashing across the bottom half of the screen. It almost looked like the type of interference you'd see on a tv screen if you were vacuuming and lasted only about 1/10 of a second each time. I attributed it to a problem with my cable provider since the HDTV signal went out shortly after and did so several times that night.

I have never used the HDMI interface. This is strictly component and has not happened again since and did not happened before that night either.

KCR, that is a pretty good description of the "flash."

VERY brief, almost like some electrical interference. Corrupt data sounds about right, too. I have not seen it on component connections, only HDMI (with 2 different DVD players AND 2 different cables-- one $100.00 and one that came with one of the players).

KCR, that is a pretty good description of the "flash."

VERY brief, almost like some electrical interference. Corrupt data sounds about right, too. I have not seen it on component connections, only HDMI (with 2 different DVD players AND 2 different cables-- one $100.00 and one that came with one of the players).

I watched 2 hours of HD TIVO'D programming on Wednesday night and another 2 hours of live programming last night and haven't seen a return of the "flash" in what seems like weeks! My wife (who watches mostly SD programming during the day) hasn't seen it on live programming over the HD TIVO (HDMI connection) either and her HD recordings haven't shown a reoccurance of the flash.

Amazing. I have yet to sit down and watch a full length DVD to see if it appears on the component input for that matter either.
:(

I am really beginning to think it's a power issue of some sort-- and not with the set itself. I'm in a fairly old house where my lights sometimes do odd dimming and such, I've got a rat's nest of wires and cables and an admittedly...what's the technical term...? ah yes, CRAPPY powerstrip where everything is plugged in. Could be this set is just a bit more sensitive to the fluctuations such a set up allows.

Of course, I'm guessing that now, some OTHER "flasher" will state that they have some high-dollar power filter, etc that will, of course, derail my entire theory... :confused:

Taken from Zenith's website:
1366 x 768p Resolution High resolution format produces extremely detailed imagery

I notice that some DLP TV can do 1920 x 1080p even through PC

Why is it we can only do 1024 x 768?

This is a BIG DEAL to me, I love to use my computer and to game. And while 1024 isnt bad, 1366 would be much better.

TIA

I am really beginning to think it's a power issue of some sort-- and not with the set itself. I'm in a fairly old house where my lights sometimes do odd dimming and such, I've got a rat's nest of wires and cables and an admittedly...what's the technical term...? ah yes, CRAPPY powerstrip where everything is plugged in. Could be this set is just a bit more sensitive to the fluctuations such a set up allows.

Of course, I'm guessing that now, some OTHER "flasher" will state that they have some high-dollar power filter, etc that will, of course, derail my entire theory... :confused:


I think it's power related also. I've had my TV for about 2 weeks and then suddenly noticed alot of flashing over component connection (did not have HDMI hooked up yet). I had 3 power strips daisy chained and had the tv plugged into the first powerstrip. Tried plugging it into the last strip in the chain and have not had any flashing since (it's been about a week now). These are regular $10 power strips.

Hello all, and thanks for all the info and any additional help/info to come.

I purchased the Z50PX2D 8 days ago, and am overall fairly happy with it with a few possible problems and questions. Bear with me, as I am as yet unschooled in most of this.

First, I've had intermittent issues with the Zenith remote (or TV itself) freezing primarily when using the guide or scrolling through the ratio settings. I've replaced the batteries with no real change. I've not been successful in determining a specific scenario that causes the problem. Has anyone else had this problem?

Second, I had initially set my cable box (Comcast Motorola with DVR) to the 1080i setting, but when I allow the box/TV to "converse" through the Restore Defaults feature, it sets to 720p as the supposed "best" setting. My eyes thought that 1080i was better, but I could be making that up, as it's difficult to get a true read since I can't toggle back and forth quickly. Is it possible 1080i looks better, and am I likely causing any other issues if I have it set to something other than 720p?

Finally, I've had a few instances of a problem with switching between HD and analog programming. A few times, when returning to HD content after switching to analog channels, the HD channel has shown as a sort of "squashed" 4/3. I can make it change back using the ratio button, but it doesn't seem as if I should have to do that. It's think it's only occurred after switching from the 1080i to 720p setting on the cable box, so it may be that the ratio settings needed to be reset after that adjustment. Anyone else having the problem, is this fairly normal, or is there something I've done to cause this?

Thank you in advance for any thoughts and assistance.

I am sorry but I do not recall. It was a rather fine thread bolt and I think like 5 mm.
I do remember that it was metric.

I planned the install out on a Friday evening and went out and got everything I needed so I could spend all day Saturday if I wanted and not rush this job.

I took the ones in the Omnimount bag (they have screws for a LOT of diferent TV thread sizes) to that HW store I mentioned.

Also, the lag bolts that are used to bolt the plate into the stub are BIG so be very careful to make sure you have found the exact center of the stud or you can slpit the 2x4 .

Personally, I think Omnimount went over board on the size of the lag bolt.
4 lag bolts as big around as your finger for the bracket BUT only 4 dinky metal screws bolted to the TV set made NO sense to me.
The had not choice of course with the diameter of the TV screws and it was an exact fit.
I feel much better knowing that there are now 6 high quality metal screws holding the TV on.

Also, make sure you drill a full length pilot hole first.
I did not go all the way in with a pliot hole on the first of the 4 monster bolts and I could hear the wood cracking behind the wall as I got near the end of tightening it. It takes a socket wrench to screw them in but don't overtighten or you may hear that dreaded 'keerak' sound.

Take your time, take my advice about the stud center,etc. and it is a piece of cake.
Believe it or not, the LONGEST (by far) part of the job was finding the exact stud center.

I used a sonic stud finder and it is supposed to let you find the edge of ech side of the 2x4 but I could never get a consistent reading.

What I ended up doing was that I took a little nail and hammered it around where the stud find indicated the edge oif each side was.

With this install, I am ready to simply hang my next one - a 65" 1080P Plasma :)

I, too, went to the hardware store to purchase several bolts to mount the brackets to the back of the display, but the local store did not have bolts of sufficient quality to make me feel assured.

Therefore, in my effort to save someone an unnececssary trip and bolt analysis, the bolts that come from the legs of the Zenith's stand are of sufficient grade and length, thread perfectly and there are six (6) total. As I recall, one (1) bolt on each side was longer than the others and I placed those in the middle. As always

Best regards,

ynogatna

I purchased the set about 2 weeks ago and was just ready to tweak the #s since it turned 130 hours.
However just today I notice 3 strange pixels (dead pixels?). All of them are very bright blinks rapidly and has distinct color (2 blue, 1 red) on what it should have been black. It is not really noticable when viewing in distance (6ft+), of course, but it is there when I look for it closely.

I don't think it will affect the viewing of moving picture but it may affect picture viewing and PC usage.

My concern is whether I should return it or not.
Anyone experience this, or am I being too cautious...

I purchased the set about 2 weeks ago and was just ready to tweak the #s since it turned 130 hours.
However just today I notice 3 strange pixels (dead pixels?). All of them are very bright blinks rapidly and has distinct color (2 blue, 1 red) on what it should have been black. It is not really noticable when viewing in distance (6ft+), of course, but it is there when I look for it closely.

I don't think it will affect the viewing of moving picture but it may affect picture viewing and PC usage.

My concern is whether I should return it or not.
Anyone experience this, or am I being too cautious...

My general rule is if the product exhibits problems during the return period; I will return it. It may be a lot of trouble to return such a bulky and sensitive item, but the return period is usually the most hassle free for getting rid of a defective product and obtaining a working one.

Also, be sure that if you "exchange" the display for another plasma display that the same original return period applies to your new product rather than the store simply giving you the remainder of the original return period, which in this instance would be roughly two (2) weeks. Your current display took two (2) weeks before it began to present problems and your exchange display may take some time as well. If the retailer is one that only provides the remainder of the original return period to be applied to the exchanged product, return the display altogether and make a new purchase. Personally, if a retailer made me do the latter with a product as cumbersome as a 50" plasma, I would purchase elsewhere. As always,

Best regards,

ynogatna

Taken from Zenith's website:
1366 x 768p Resolution High resolution format produces extremely detailed imagery

I notice that some DLP TV can do 1920 x 1080p even through PC

Why is it we can only do 1024 x 768?

This is a BIG DEAL to me, I love to use my computer and to game. And while 1024 isnt bad, 1366 would be much better.

TIA

Anyone? Please... :)

Just tested the monitor output jack and found the following.

* To get a signal on the monitor output jack the Zenith must be on.
* The Zenith (or cable box, antenna) controls the channels.

Just tested the monitor output jack and found the following.

* To get a signal on the monitor output jack the Zenith must be on.
* The Zenith (or cable box, antenna) controls the channels.

And this helps us how? ;)

As far as the resolution, best I can get is 1024x768x75hz, the manual is says that is max for PC display, if you can ever get 1366 x 768, let me know how you do it. Thanks.

I'll take your word for it that a game looks okay but i can tell you that DVD's do NOT because 1024x768 is not a proper 16x9 ratio.


You can only get to 1024x768 because you are using the the RGB input.

I have that connected as well but I use my 720P connection because it looks better in the PQ department and DVD's look proper.

720P Resolution:

a) Get a Video card with a DVI connector(I use a Radeon 9600). Go cheap
b) Connect PC card to HDMI input (will need a DVI to HDMI cable)
c) Set Resolution to 1280x720
d) Switch TV to HDMI input
d) If you are using a Radeon you will have a picture but it will be overscanned.
Use the Catalyst Control panel to adust the overscan as well as the Service mode on the TV
If using another Brand card then either use Powerstrip to get proper timings for picture OR the card itself may fully support 720P like the Radeon does.

e) you are done.


The TV may be speced at 1366x768 pixels but that is NOT one of the ATSC standards.

Don't hold your breath on getting (at least the ATI Radeon card) to put out a non-standard timing of 1366x768.

This is a 720P TV which is the ATSC standard of a Progressive Scan 1280x720 HDTV.

I guess it upconverts the incoming 720P signal to use those extra pixels or it is marketing hype.

And this helps us how? ;)

I asked a question earlier about the monitor jacks and how they are used. Instead of waiting for an answer I borrowed a portable TV with A/V jacks and tested the Zenith.

I thought someone else might be interested in what I found.

d) If you are using a Radeon you will have a picture but it will be overscanned.
Use the Catalyst Control panel to adust the overscan as well as the Service mode on the TV
If using another Brand card then either use Powerstrip to get proper timings for picture OR the card itself may fully support 720P like the Radeon does.



I have a 256mb Nvidia GeForce Go 7800 GTX in a DELL Inspiron XPS Gen2.

And trust me games look awesome in 1024 x 768.

Unreal Tournament 2004, Cal of Duty 2, F.E.A.R., Quake 4

No lag at all.

I will try to see if I can get more than 1024 x 768 (PC Mode) and anyone that figures something out, please let us know.

Tombster: Its cool, just messing with ya.

A) I notice that some DLP TV can do 1920 x 1080p even through PC

B) Why is it we can only do 1024 x 768?

C) This is a BIG DEAL to me, I love to use my computer and to game. And while 1024 isnt bad, 1366 would be much better.

TIA

A - 1080P IS one of the ATSC standards and I would expect a high end model to support that from a PC.
Remember, their are no consumer Plasma sets that a mere mortal could afford which do 1080P.

B - Because it keeps the cost down on the circuitry for the RGB connection and keeps the cost of the TV down. This is not a high end TV with all the bells and whistles. It is why we like it - it is affordable with a great picture.

C - See my other post on how to get the TV to do the standard 720P timing from a PC
Ever seen a setting in Display Properties on your PC for 1366x768? I sure have not,

I will try to see if I can get more than 1024 x 768 (PC Mode) and anyone that figures something out, please let us know.
.

One last time!!

The RGB input on the TV supports ALL the standard PC resolutions up to 1024x768.
Try to drive that input higher than 1024x728 and the TV will NOT sync.

The owner's manual is quite explicit on this and for once, it is correct.
I have the service manual on this set and the chip that handles the RGB input maxes out at 1024x768.

If you want 640x480, it will even do that.


You will see nothing in the owner's manual about PC connection to Component or HDMI BUT read on:


If you want the best resolution that this TV can do, use either the HDMI input or the Component input(requires a YPB adaptor) and set the PC to the TV's highest supported resolution:1280x720 aka 720P

Read this carefully: Using Powerstrip on the HDMI input, I have gotten the TV to sync at 1366x768 but I had massive overscan in the H and V dimensions and was unable to correct it.
We are tallking the entire Windows Taskbar NOT showing and 1 3/4 Icon's on the edge were not showing.

And trust me games look awesome in 1024 x 768.

Unreal Tournament 2004, Cal of Duty 2, F.E.A.R., Quake 4

No lag at all.



I know as I am running games from my PC at both 1024x768 and 720P - they do look awesome.
I like the quality (as well as the proper aspect ratio) of the 720P better so that is now all I use but I don't think it is the increased pixel count as it is not all that much more. I suspect it is the HDMI input.

There will be no lag -you are thinking of an LCD TV where you do have to watch the response time when buying one. Plasma technology is totally diferent and has no lag
hence no numbers are published.

Plasma's are like Phased Array Antenna's. Since it is electrically turning on an element, it can 'sweep' from one edge to the other with Zero lag because it is not really sweeping.

Joe Q:

Thanks for the schooling. :)

Well I will try to see if I can get 1280 x 720 via HDMI or Component input, I would like to continue to use that for my DVD to TV connection, seems it works so well already.

My laptop has VGA and DVI outputs.

Can I do a VGA (output from laptop) to Component input (Input to TV) cable?

See pic:
http://images.monoprice.com/productlargeimages/21731.jpg

Just throwing ideas out there. Thanks.

Anybody have a problem with buzzing? I just got mine yesterday and during bright, quiet scenes where people are just talking, the display buzzes really loud. Was wondering if I should return it or not, and if a replacement would be any better.

I just purchased Z50PX2D about two weeks ago. The PQ is quite impressive overall, except there is noticeable glow (another way to call it is "halo") around white highlights. This is most pronounced in white text on dark background, as well as pure white objects such as white t-shirt. Feels like the light from the white pixels "spills out" to the neighboring dark pixels. :(

I set contrast to 42, and brightness to 41. So it's already way below the torch mode. I suspect further turning down contrast and brightness would help, but that would make the picture too dark.

Is this normal? Anybody else noticed this problem? FWIW, I checked out Philips 50PF7220A in Costco lately and noticed the similar problem. And all the Pannys I looked at seemed to be fine.

My laptop has VGA and DVI outputs.

Can I do a VGA (output from laptop) to Component input (Input to TV) cable?




NO that cable won't work for component cause it is not a component output.

All that cable is doing is going from a 15 pin VGA (RGB) to an RCA (RGB) connection.

If, for example, the Zenith's RGB input was an RCA type instead of the VGA type, you would need this cable.

When I was talking about component, in my case , I have the ATI YPB component dongle which is how I can get component output to the TV.

Other folks use a Video Transcoder but they are not cheap.

Your only choice may be HDMI.


An idea for you.
Use the cable from your DVD player (may need a trip to BB for an HDMI to DVI connector) and see if you can get 720P working on the HDMI input from your graphics card.

If you like what you see, buy an HDMI switch.
Check out the Monoprice avsforum sponsor at the top of this page.

I have 3 HDMI sources so I bought a 4 input HDMI switch from them.
REALLY great price.
The do make a cheaper 2 input switch also.

Anybody have a problem with buzzing? I just got mine yesterday and during bright, quiet scenes where people are just talking, the display buzzes really loud. Was wondering if I should return it or not, and if a replacement would be any better.


Not exactly the same but I have been complaining that when the TV is on, AM radio stations buzz like crazy. I am talking from over 20 feet from the TV.

Several folks responded that it does not happen to them but it makes listening to AM talk radio impossible because the buzzing overwhelms the signal.

I was surprised that this did NOT effect the sound when listening through the TV's own speakers and using it's built in tuner.

I wonder if yours and mine is related. Maybe some kind of RF filter in the TV is not working?

See if your TV messes up AM radio.

I chose to live with it but if it did it on the TV itself, NO question - back it would have gone

If you like what you see, buy an HDMI switch.
Check out the Monoprice avsforum sponsor at the top of this page.

I have 3 HDMI sources so I bought a 4 input HDMI switch from them.
REALLY great price.
The do make a cheaper 2 input switch also.

Check this out:

http://images.monoprice.com/productlargeimages/25221.jpg

Only $12, I gotta buy cables from them anyways. I guess I will see how well they work.

Anybody have a problem with buzzing? I just got mine yesterday and during bright, quiet scenes where people are just talking, the display buzzes really loud. Was wondering if I should return it or not, and if a replacement would be any better.

Nope, no buzzing here. This TV rocks! Get a replacement if it cant be fixed easily somehow.

Only problem I have is not getting 1366 x 768 through my laptop (which the dumb Best Buy salesman said was no problem, idiot!)

NOTE: Next time I read the user manual before I believe what a salesperson tells me.

But I may have to settle for 1280 x 720 or something close, just need to get the right cables, and some luck.

I also noticed a dead pixil mine is blue and in the middle of my screen. Unfortunately, I noticed mine after owning the tv 32 days. I'd return it.

Check this out:


Only $12, I gotta buy cables from them anyways. I guess I will see how well they work.

I'll save you the trouble:) It WON'T work.

Well, it will work - just not for your application.
That is unless you plan on feeding 2 HDMI display devices from 1 Source.

I hope you did not order that because if you did, you just tossed 12 bucks in a bucket.

I'll save you the trouble:) It WON'T work.

Well, it will work - just not for your application.
That is unless you plan on feeding 2 HDMI display devices from 1 Source.

I hope you did not order that because if you did, you just tossed 12 bucks in a bucket.

Nah I didn't. I almost did, but then I read this:

(*) This is splitter cable. You can only connect one input device (i.e. DVD player,cable box or satellite receiver) to two output device(i.e. TV or projector).You can't connect two input device (i.e. DVD player,cable box or satellite receiver) to one output device(i.e. TV or projector)

And plus its $14. May have to break down and get the HDMI switcher, question is 2 or 4 ports. Too many decisions!

Hello fellow Z50PX2D owners!...
I am new to this forum, but have been reading this thread for a week or so and I am happy to say that you have all assisted in helping me make the decision to purchase the Zenith Z50PX2D. (which I happily took delivery of this past Saturday)...thank you all for your experiences and a forum to share them in!!! Now for my questions:

Question (1):
In keeping with the HDMI format to insure the finest HD signals, I went ahead and purchased a Samsung DVD-HD755 upconversion player (mainly due to the fact that the price was too enticing to pass up...feel free to comment on my player selection) Since the Z50PX2D has only (1) HDMI input and my Comcast STB has (1) HDMI output, my only way to utilize the upconversion capability of the DVD-HD755 is to also connect through HDMI …(dilemma…or so I thought)

Joe Q. referred to a HDMI switch. After searching the web for available choices, it seems that there are a few available…among those I’ve seen are:
1. DIGI media switches (from Monoprice),
2. HDMI Link switches (from RT Com USA),
3. Gefen Switches, and
4. Octava Switches (from Octava Inc.)
Is there any experiences out there with any of these products?...I am concerned about signal loss or drop off (reflection?)

Question (2):
With all the talk of HD-DVD’s and Blue ray, is there any word as to whether or not today’s upconversion players will be able to play HD-DVD or blue ray formatted discs? Or are we looking at yet another “paper weight” for a local garage sale…

thank you in advance...

this is ironic.. all the people "in the know" who knew that the zenith had an LG panel inside cannot figure out something easy like how to obtain 1366x768

if you do any research for custom tv resolutions one name will ALWAYS pop up, powerstrip

and theres about 20 guides out there if you google: "powerstrip guide" as well

now i did have problems actually getting powerstrip to work (even after consulting the guides), but that is because i tried to illegally obtain it, just download the FREE trial version and you will not have any problems.

I just purchased Z50PX2D about two weeks ago. The PQ is quite impressive overall, except there is noticeable glow (another way to call it is "halo") around white highlights. This is most pronounced in white text on dark background, as well as pure white objects such as white t-shirt. Feels like the light from the white pixels "spills out" to the neighboring dark pixels. :(

I set contrast to 42, and brightness to 41. So it's already way below the torch mode. I suspect further turning down contrast and brightness would help, but that would make the picture too dark.

Is this normal? Anybody else noticed this problem? FWIW, I checked out Philips 50PF7220A in Costco lately and noticed the similar problem. And all the Pannys I looked at seemed to be fine.

No one? Just want to figure out whether this one is defective and I need to exchange for another one.

this is ironic.. all the people "in the know" who knew that the zenith had an LG panel inside cannot figure out something easy like how to obtain 1366x768

if you do any research for custom tv resolutions one name will ALWAYS pop up, powerstrip

and theres about 20 guides out there if you google: "powerstrip guide" as well

now i did have problems actually getting powerstrip to work (even after consulting the guides), but that is because i tried to illegally obtain it, just download the FREE trial version and you will not have any problems.

If it is so EASY as you put it, then figure it out and tell me how to do it. ;)

If it is so EASY as you put it, then figure it out and tell me how to do it. ;)

connect it via hdmi->dvi, or maybe analog works, depending on the tv

right click powerstrip in sys task tray -> display profiles -> configure -> advanced timing options -> "Custom Resolutions" -> scroll down till you get to 1366x768(PDP), add it, adjust it if theres any problems

done

i dont know why i helped since you didnt even say please :P

and come on people, if its limited to only 1024x768, then at least try the other input, its clear that the TV is limited to 1024x768 with analog.. which sucks :|

I just purchased Z50PX2D about two weeks ago. The PQ is quite impressive overall, except there is noticeable glow (another way to call it is "halo") around white highlights. This is most pronounced in white text on dark background, as well as pure white objects such as white t-shirt. Feels like the light from the white pixels "spills out" to the neighboring dark pixels. :(

I set contrast to 42, and brightness to 41. So it's already way below the torch mode. I suspect further turning down contrast and brightness would help, but that would make the picture too dark.

Is this normal? Anybody else noticed this problem? FWIW, I checked out Philips 50PF7220A in Costco lately and noticed the similar problem. And all the Pannys I looked at seemed to be fine.

It's funny that you mention this because I was about to ask the same thing yesterday but I forgot. I've noticed the same thing with mine.

I played with the settings quite a bit but couldn't get things just right. My wife tells me I'm crazy but the glow is definitely there.

I calibrated my set with the Avia calibration DVD today which seems to have helped out greatly with the glow. I can still see it at times but not nearly as much as originally.

After calibration I ended up with Contrast at 34 and Brightness at 62. Looks good now.

I've read that this is a problem with plasmas. Has anyone figured out how to eliminate this glow completely without losing picture detail?

So it looks like I'm really the only one who has a buzzing problem...i run my tv cold and no buzzing...then after about 1.5 hours, the buzzing starts up, and gets louder...it's only heard when I mute everything or during really quiet scenes in a show/movie, but definitely noticable to me.

I really want to do a swap, but bestbuy said that if i do this, then my rebate might not go through (since you technically return it and buy a new one) which is a substantial amount of money. They're sending a tech out saturday... you guys think this person will be able to fix it? I have my doubts.

So it looks like I'm really the only one who has a buzzing problem...i run my tv cold and no buzzing...then after about 1.5 hours, the buzzing starts up, and gets louder...it's only heard when I mute everything or during really quiet scenes in a show/movie, but definitely noticable to me.

I really want to do a swap, but bestbuy said that if i do this, then my rebate might not go through (since you technically return it and buy a new one) which is a substantial amount of money. They're sending a tech out saturday... you guys think this person will be able to fix it? I have my doubts.

I have no noticeable buzzing during normal use at normal viewing distances. If I get to within about 2 ft of the tv, I can hear a very faint buzzing (and I have pretty good hearing to being with).

During calibration, certain white patterns would cause the TV to produce a very noticeable buzzing sound from within 5 feet. I just tested the white wash to see if it would produce any buzzing but it did not.

Is the monitor wall mounted or sitting on the base it comes with? maybe the way it's mounted is helping to amplify the buzzing noise?

So it looks like I'm really the only one who has a buzzing problem...i run my tv cold and no buzzing...then after about 1.5 hours, the buzzing starts up, and gets louder...
I haven't noticed any buzzing at all, unless I'm right behind the TV. At normal viewing distances, it's very quiet. I usually have it on for a couple of hours at a time. The other day, it was on for 8 hours. Didn't notice any buzzing then, either.

connect it via hdmi->dvi, or maybe analog works, depending on the tv

right click powerstrip in sys task tray -> display profiles -> configure -> advanced timing options -> "Custom Resolutions" -> scroll down till you get to 1366x768(PDP), add it, adjust it if theres any problems

done

i dont know why i helped since you didnt even say please :P

and come on people, if its limited to only 1024x768, then at least try the other input, its clear that the TV is limited to 1024x768 with analog.. which sucks :|

OK and just to make sure. You have successfully done this and it looks as good if not better than 1024 x 768. Fonts are readable, games play awesome, Windows Media Player, Internet, etc??? Because if so, I am buying a DVI->HDMI cable and a HDMI switcher box today!!!! Please let me know!

A funny story for those of you who go CRAZY when STUFF happens that you _JUST_ can't figure out....but there's ALWAYS a logical explanation:

On Sunday I watched about 2 hours worth of programming on my Zenith in the early afternoon....no problems. Then I set out to do some chores around the house. Go to sit down at around 6:30 and watch some TV and lo and behold my HD TIVO is wigging out. Not responding properly to the remote control....flipping through page after page of the guide when I hit the "guide" button, unable to get into the main menu without hitting a button 4 or 5 times. Not reliably changing channels. I figure I need to reboot the TIVO--maybe the HD is fried? So I do this and then grab the ZENITH remote to turn the TV off....and lo and behold THAT's not responding to the remote commands either!! So I decide to disconnect the HDMI cord thinking that's what's causing the TV/TIVO to wig out. No dice. Same crap. On EVERY input I switched the TV to (COMP 1/ANTENNA/HDMI) I had the same lack of response to the remote, where it would only responding to every 4th/5th command. I'm thinking....WTF? Electrical problem? Is there a magnet somewhere near the TV? I'm literally in a cold sweat now!

So I turn the TV off by the button on the bottom LH side...and then turn it back on and let the TIVO reboot and switch to the Component input for the HD TIVO since I disconnected the HDMI wire...and same SHYNOLA is happening. TV still isn't responding to commands. I bring up a remote from a different TIVO downstairs thinking maybe the TIVO remote is whacked out. Same crap. So I decide to unhook the TIVO, bring it downstairs and hook it up in place of my other HD TIVO...and the darn thing works FINE! Responds properly to the remote. No problems! Then I go back upstairs to check the TV using the ZENITH remote....and the TV is still not responding properly. I didn't know WTF to think. So now I'm thinking it's something electrical. So I unplug the TV from the power strip and go directly into the wall. Same result.

Then I think to myself that I should try my DVD player...and see how that remote/setup responds. I switch TV inputs (After 45 TV/VIDEO button presses...) and the DVD player works fine! Responds PERFECTLY to the ZENITH DVD remote. Then I decide to try the ZENITH DVD remote and see if it can control the ZENITH TV....and the SAME CRAP IS HAPPENING....it only responds to every 4th/5th button press! Now I'm just about ready to scream (not that I already haven't....but the blood curdling scream of "WHICH ONE OF YOU KIDS MESSED THIS UP" was about to come out).

Then I thought to myself: Hey stupid, it's GOT to be an issue with something in the living room since the HD TIVO worked FINE when you brought it downstairs. Think stupid.... And then it dawns on me. When I went to do some chores after watching TV earlier in the day I'd brought up a plastic bag with 3 DirecTV receivers and 3 remotes (1 an RF) and laid them next to the couch as I planned to sell them on EBAY. I later find out that my wife rearranged the bag.....and lo and behold she positioned it such that ALL THREE REMOTES had their "buttons pressed" from the weight of the receivers in the bag and were shooting RIGHT at the TV!!! Can you believe that? Those 3 remotes were literally screwing with the IR remote commands from BOTH my HD TIVO and my Zenith remote!!! As soon as I repositioned the bag so the "buttons weren't pressed" by the weight of the bag, (and the 3 remotes stopped "shooting" their commands at the TV) everything worked fine!!! And the reason that the DVD player was totally operable (I'm sure there are more than one reason) was because the DVD was on the bottom of the stand and was "out of the way" of the 3 remotes "streams".

Bottom line: Don't cross the streams...... :eek:

Talk about a head scratcher....but, I guess the answer to a problem is ALWAYS the most obvious!!!

^---- Whats that? Don't get married? :p

^---- Whats that? Don't get married? :p

Why....yes....yes that IS the answer.... LOL

:D

If it is so EASY as you put it, then figure it out and tell me how to do it. ;)



This is my last response to you because it is really obvious that you must have trouble reading English.

I replied to you in several posts about 1366 but obviously did not 'get it'.

Then.
That HDMI splitter cable you were about ready to buy was the eye opener for me. It clearly stated that it was a splitter for feeding 2 HDMI devices and not a switcher which is what you wanted but you were all set to buy it.

I told you that I ran the TV at 1366x768 in this post:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7022427&&#post7022427

and told you the results.


Please read things in their entirety before posting replies!

This is my last response to you because it is really obvious that you must have trouble reading English.

I replied to you in several posts about 1366 but obviously did not 'get it'.

Then.
That HDMI splitter cable you were about ready to buy was the eye opener for me. It clearly stated that it was a splitter for feeding 2 HDMI devices and not a switcher which is what you wanted but you were all set to buy it.

I told you that I ran the TV at 1366x768 in this post:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7022427&&#post7022427

and told you the results.


Please read things in their entirety before posting replies!

Actually I have NO problem reading english.

I was just jokingly replying to GOTCHAFORCE...

Quote:
Originally Posted by gotchaforce
this is ironic.. all the people "in the know" who knew that the zenith had an LG panel inside cannot figure out something easy like how to obtain 1366x768

if you do any research for custom tv resolutions one name will ALWAYS pop up, powerstrip

and theres about 20 guides out there if you google: "powerstrip guide" as well

now i did have problems actually getting powerstrip to work (even after consulting the guides), but that is because i tried to illegally obtain it, just download the FREE trial version and you will not have any problems.

Originally Posted by jkeener71
If it is so EASY as you put it, then figure it out and tell me how to do it. ;)

Sorry I struck a nerve. :(

It's funny that you mention this because I was about to ask the same thing yesterday but I forgot. I've noticed the same thing with mine.

I played with the settings quite a bit but couldn't get things just right. My wife tells me I'm crazy but the glow is definitely there.

I calibrated my set with the Avia calibration DVD today which seems to have helped out greatly with the glow. I can still see it at times but not nearly as much as originally.

After calibration I ended up with Contrast at 34 and Brightness at 62. Looks good now.

I've read that this is a problem with plasmas. Has anyone figured out how to eliminate this glow completely without losing picture detail?


Can one of you guys take a picture of this "glow" effect around the white? I have not seen it on my set.. Maybe you can take a picture of one of those THX testing screens with all the sharp lines on it.. the testing util that comes on the star wars dvds and others..

Thanks for the info Chili_Dog...just makes me sad, that after all the research I've done, I still get a lemon =(

I haven't noticed any buzzing at all, unless I'm right behind the TV. At normal viewing distances, it's very quiet. I usually have it on for a couple of hours at a time. The other day, it was on for 8 hours. Didn't notice any buzzing then, either.

No wall mount here, just sitting on the base on top of my tv stand...and I've moved the tv to the middle of the room and there's still a buzzing (thus not an amplification echo thing)...I've tried plugging in the darn thing (through extention cords) to a plug in my bedroom,bathroom, kitchen, etc, to see if it was a ground loop problem. Still the buzzing

All things point to it being a power supply on the fritz though, since it becomes more pronounce when it warms up.

Now I just gotta figure out a way to keep my rebate and return the sucker at the same time...waaa



I have no noticeable buzzing during normal use at normal viewing distances. If I get to within about 2 ft of the tv, I can hear a very faint buzzing (and I have pretty good hearing to being with).

During calibration, certain white patterns would cause the TV to produce a very noticeable buzzing sound from within 5 feet. I just tested the white wash to see if it would produce any buzzing but it did not.

Is the monitor wall mounted or sitting on the base it comes with? maybe the way it's mounted is helping to amplify the buzzing noise?

Can one of you guys take a picture of this "glow" effect around the white? I have not seen it on my set.. Maybe you can take a picture of one of those THX testing screens with all the sharp lines on it.. the testing util that comes on the star wars dvds and others..

Here is what I was talking about. FYI, the video source is Oppo 971H upconvert DVD player via HDMI (720p).

Here is what I was talking about. FYI, the video source is Oppo 971H upconvert DVD player via HDMI (720p).

The glow round the shirt looks like what I'm seeing as well only your's seem to have much more glow. There's a name for it but I can't remember what it is at this time. It's mentioned on the Avia DVD (Similar to blooming on CRTs) and they say to keep contrast just below the point where this occurs.

It's almost like the upper white level is too high. There's probably something in the service menus that can be adjusted to correct this only I'm not up to playing with anything I shouldn't be.

Anybody have any ideas?

Here is what I was talking about. FYI, the video source is Oppo 971H upconvert DVD player via HDMI (720p).


Could it be because of some settings on the oppo? I saw in the oppo faq something about bleeding of colors in the defects list..

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=491306&page=1&pp=30

Do you get the blooming through other HDTV signals?

The more I watch my set, the more I realize just how bright the thing is.

I started out with Joe's calibrated settings, and over time, reduced the contrast several times to a point I would have previously thought to be "too dark." I now keep the contrast around 32 or 34 depending on source material and the brightness around 46 or 48 (I'll probably turn the brightness up into the mid 50s once I get some more time on the set). I also keep the color dialed down quite a bit, in the low 20's.

I really like the picture at those settings, even though I originally thought I would not.

You may be surprised at how low a contrast setting you actually need. Of course, YMMV.

No wall mount here, just sitting on the base on top of my tv stand...and I've moved the tv to the middle of the room and there's still a buzzing (thus not an amplification echo thing)...I've tried plugging in the darn thing (through extention cords) to a plug in my bedroom,bathroom, kitchen, etc, to see if it was a ground loop problem. Still the buzzing

All things point to it being a power supply on the fritz though, since it becomes more pronounce when it warms up.

Now I just gotta figure out a way to keep my rebate and return the sucker at the same time...waaa

How load is the buzz? Have you figured out where the sound is coming from? There is a cooling fan in this TV. I'm sure it introduces some vibration into the chassis. So, it could be as simple as a panel that's not fully dampened.

Mine had a buzzing sound a few weeks ago that went away by itself. It sounded like the cooling fan blade was rubbing something when spinning and can be heard over 10 feet away. It happened several times, each time lasting the entire viewing session. But, I haven't heard it in 2-3 weeks. My TV is usually on for 3-4 hours each night. Other than that, I have only noticed a very faint and very soft whirling sound of the cooling fan when I stick my head behind the TV.

Funny story Jaypb. Thanks for the laugh.